The Gathering of the Legends 3: Journey Through the Past
by LegendsGuardian
Summary: Book 3 in the TGOL series. The Ronin are uneasy; do they want their memories back, or are they better off without them? With trouble suddenly arising in the Nether Realm it would seem like the perfect opportunity to put their worries on hold. It's not.
1. Prologue

**The Gathering of the Legends **

**Book Three: Journey Through the Past**

**By: LG**

**Prologue:**

**Written: March 20, 2008**

**Typed up: March 25, 2008**

**

* * *

  
**

**Summary: **The Ronin are uneasy; do they want their memories back, or are they better off without them? With trouble suddenly arising in the Nether Realm it would seem like the perfect opportunity to put their worries on hold. It's not. Which is more dangerous: a past you cannot recall, or an enemy you cannot find? For the Ronin Warriors, the answer to that question may not be the one they want to hear.

**

* * *

  
**

Midnight-blue eyes shot open as their owner practically bolted from the dead sleep he had been in. The archer vainly struggled to regain his breath, and then pinched the bridge of his nose.

He let out a heavy sigh as he then took his hand and ran it through his blue-locks, noticing that it shook as he moved it. Rowen tried to calm himself down by pushing the images from his head.

A dream…That was all it had been…A very horrible nightmare that was it and nothing more. Right? That had to have been it. The archer glanced around a moment, trying to rack his brain to figure out where he was.

As the panic subsided, and the sleep wore off a little he was reminded of his whereabouts. He was in the room he shared with the Ronin of Halo, they having taken it not more than a few weeks ago.

"What time is it?" Rowen mumbled out, eyes immediately going to his nightstand to check the clock. Four o'clock in the morning!?

The midnight-blue eyes now widened, he had not been concerned that Sage was absent, figuring it was around six or so. But this early in the morning? Not a chance, unless something was wrong.

Rowen lept out of the bed and immediately bit down a yelp at the action. His hand immediately went to his left arm and he rubbed at it, it was on fire. The Strata Ronin's entire body ached with pain, and he could not remember what had happened to cause any of it.

That nightmare…It had startled him far too much, and now he couldn't think straight. Why though? Why had he seen himself and the bearer of Halo fighting, and how did he know even from that brief glimpse that they had lost?

The archer grabbed his head and tried vainly to clear it, but it seemed futile as the scene replayed, and this time went to the point of showing him just how badly he and Sage had lost.

"What?!" He shook himself, again, and exited the room. He needed to find out what was going on, and what exactly had happened to him that had caused his current sore limbs…And finding out where the _hell_ Sage had disappeared to was at the top of his things to do list.

* * *

_A/N: Hello Minna-san! Welcome back to The Gathering of the Legends series. I hope you enjoyed your little break from my completely insane story. As I post this prologue up on ffnet for you to read, I am in the process of typing up the mostly completed Book 5. I do apologize for the long-update absence but I completely forgot about ffnet after getting a full-time job (in addition to my other full time job) back in Sept. It dawned on me the other day I had not updated anything for you all to read, so I am now correcting the mistake._

_Sort of. I know, the prologue is exceedingly small; but that's a common thing with me. I don't like long-drawn out prologues, thus I don't write them. Expect Chapter One to be up here by the end of the week (if I remember it). _

_Also, for those of you who read this for the Ronin and Senshi interaction, there will be little to none in this story. Out of all the TGOL Books this one is almost solely about the Ronin. Just wanted to give you a heads up. :-)_

_LG _


	2. Chapter 1: April 1997

**Chapter One:**

**Written: March 20, 2008**

**Typed up: March 25, 2008**

_**April 1997**_

_**

* * *

  
**_

Time had moved quickly at some points, while seeming to stall at others. In either case, March was gone and before they knew it April was upon them.

The Senshi had not been gone for more than a week before the Ronin and Seasonals had taken advantage of the fact some of the rooms were now open for use. The rooms they were currently in were anything but small, but it was starting to feel a little cramped.

Dais and Anubis had moved into the room once occupied by the Inner Senshi, while Sage and Rowen had taken the Outers old room. Cye and Kento had also wanted to vacate the room they had shared with the other Ronin, rather used to bunking together and each other's odd habits.

Elayne had been there that day, and slyly commented that they could share the closet if they were _that_ desperate. Both men had immediately understood what she was implying, made horrendous faces and made sure they were _far_ away from one another for the rest of the day. That had caused the other warriors to howl in laughter.

The final decision had been made to cut the room the five Ronin had used back down into the two it had been at one point in the Shinwako's existence. Though, what was truly amusing was the fact that during construction Cye and Kento had gone to get the supplies they left in the closet, and somehow had become locked inside.

Anubis had heard the banging and thumping going on inside the closet, and warily unlocked the door (which for some odd reason locked from the outside) opening it up. His eyes had become saucer-like and he had promptly toppled over at seeing the two in such…Compromising positions.

Everyone had suspected Elayne of having done the deed, even though she had not been present at the time, none of them would have put it past her to do something like that. However, they all failed to notice the one white tiger and the one black tiger that were practically in stitches. The cats had locked the two Ronin in the closet, then sat back and waited for something amusing to happen. Needless to say, they were not disappointed by the results.

By the first of April the construction to the mansion had been completed, and the warriors had settled into a new routine. Rowen Hashiba had gone back to taking classes at Tokyo University, intent on getting the three degrees he was almost qualified for. Never mind the fact the archer already had two Associates, a certification, and a Bachelor's degree.

Sage Date had also decided to go back to school, in the hopes to get the necessary credits he needed for his business degree. He continued to manage the finances, and most of the official paper aspects of the Date dojo, though. One day, he might take it on, but for right now he wasn't sure that was what he wanted to do.

His grandfather had discussed with him the possible options for his future…Sure, the "Old Dragon" could be callous and seemingly cold, but deep down he cared about his grandson and wanted what was best for him. If it meant a life other than leading the Date clan, then so be it. Of course, the universe would end long before the man made such admissions aloud.

Kento ReiFaun was more than content to continue doing the Accounting work for his family's chain of restaurants from the Shinwako mansion. It was just so much easier that way, mainly because he didn't have little siblings showing up every five minutes trying to _"help."_

Now, Hardrock's bearer was also going out to the restaurant to help out, when they happened to be terribly shorthanded, which happened to occur at least once a week, if not twice.

The Ronin of Torrent had been out of school for a bit, he had earned a degree in Marine Biology, and then moved back home to help with the family pottery business. Until his mother more or less threatened to kick him out, if he didn't move back to Tokyo and get the job he wanted.

Sayoko was managing the family now, and the twins had been more than old enough for her to be able to do outside things. So, he had taken his mother's teasing advice:_ "Move out Shin, or I'm kicking you out while I'm wearing a pair of your sister's spiked heels."_

Well, he had moved back to Tokyo, spent his time trying to find the job he was looking for. Before his mother had become ill and he had moved back to Hagi, he had been working for a private sea-exploration group.

Yes, everyone had expected Cye Mouri to major in Marine Biology and work with sealife…But few had expected him to minor in art, and actually go along on expeditions to _draw_ what the group found.

Pictures from cameras might have done the same thing, but they failed to capture the detail that he managed too. The group had certainly valued the detail his hand-drawings had provided. But, he really had no interest of going back to that at this point.

So, Cye was working as a free-lance artist having grown tired of working in the kitchen. That, and with such a long absence…Well, he had no desire to do something like that again. Have a worried boss breathing down your neck the moment you get back, from falling off the face of the earth for over a month…And don't get him started on his paranoid schizophrenic coworkers.

Plus, working on commissions was nowhere near as stressful as working in a kitchen. It also helped that the Ronin of Torrent was quite good at what he did. Not that surprising really, he had grown up in pottery making and he was the best at putting detail on the pieces. The ease with which he drew and colored paintings was merely an extension of that.

Ryo Sanada had no idea what to do with himself…After the firm had downsized the year prior he'd been left without a job, and finding one after that had not been easy. Further, after the fight in Akemliek's Domain, the others had talked him into staying jobless for just a few more weeks. His body had taken more of a beating down there than anyone else's, and they wanted him to recuperate from that.

The Seasonals were in somewhat similar positions in the "not having job" aspect of things. The beings might have been hanging out in the mortal realm for ages now, having lived in it for several months at this point, but that didn't change the fact there were still some things they needed to catch up on. And, other things they just could not quite get the hang of. For the good of everyone, it was decided that they'd just loiter around the Estate and Mansion doing odd-jobs when they felt so inclined. The former Warlords did not get that urge often.

For the most part, things had been relatively quiet. Of course, by the third of the month a few of the Raikken had made a housecall. The warriors had all been sure Thanos was around, but no one could sense him. If he was there, he had obviously wanted nothing to do with the Ronin (Elemental or Seasonal).

The brief "work out" had not lasted very long. While the five Ronin were still tired from their fighting in Akemliek's domain, and had only done a few light training sessions since then, they were more than capable of holding their own.

Of course, things had not remained that simple for very long. When the Raikken had come calling the next time? It had not gone very well for the Ronin Elementals…

* * *

As Rowen came down the steps nearly two at a time, those that had been talking quietly in the living room stopped and looked to the source of the commotion.

Kayura was immediately alarmed upon seeing him, "Rowen! You shouldn't be out of bed." The Lady Ancient jumped to her feet and headed for the stairs to stop him from coming down any further.

Something else had hit the archer on his way towards the stairs and it had sent fresh panic into his mind. "What happened?" The Strata Ronin was currently spinning and as he went to grip the railing to steady himself he lost his balance completely.

Anubis let out a loose swear prepared to jump into action. He could not reach the man in order to prevent him from tumbling down all the stairs, just most of them. Yet, the Spring bearer immediately relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.

"Take it easy," Elayne An Catarina Mogami had grabbed the falling form, preventing the archer from going headfirst down the flight of stairs. She had been largely absent the past few days, weeks actually, trying to give them the space they needed while still trying to keep her duties as Secondary Guardian.

She easily shouldered Rowen's weight and guided him down the remaining steps, helping him to sit down in the chair. The girl eyed him with a worried frown.

Kayura had called earlier to say something was going on and now Elayne was starting to dread what it might be.

Rowen had been startled…The adrenaline pumping so fast in his veins he could hear the blood pounding in his ears. It had been that way ever since the image had slammed into him as he moved to walk down the stairs.

Yet, in her presence the archer felt himself calm. The fright and panic slowly ebbed away, the powers she had on her own and the jewel she always carried moving to put him at ease.

Suddenly, he clutched at his head as pain lanced through it and once more he repeated his question, voice now hoarse, "What happened?"

Elayne looked from the Strata Ronin to Kayura with worry; obviously the girl would love to know the answer to his question as well. She kept a hand on his shoulder serving to further push at the frayed nerves and keep him calm, allowing him to think clearly.

"You don't remember at all?" Kayura exchanged a look with Anubis who made a grimace. "We were fighting last night. It was hardly anything heavy, not like it has been in the past. But for some reason you and the other four simply collapsed."

The bearer of Strata's head snapped up eyes wide, "Are you serious?"

The Spring Seasonal gave a nod, "Yes, and from what we could see the enemy did nothing to you."

"Again," the archer whispered out, "I don't believe it." Elayne cast a concerned glance at him, and she raised an eyebrow. She was definitely missing something, but had to wait for someone to clue her in.

Rowen shook himself, "I'm not the first to wake up, am I?"

"Ryo woke up not even an hour after it happened," Dais brought in as he came out of the kitchen, a mug of tea in his hand. He offered it to the archer, who gladly took it.

"Kento not much later," the Winter Seasonal now brought in, he and Sekhmet having remained largely silent.

The green-haired man also added, "Cye's out cold. Sage has not stirred, either."

The Ronin of Strata nearly dropped the mug of tea he was holding, "Then _where_ is he?"

Eyes widened in alarm, but not before the Secondary Guardian cut over top of those feelings.

"OI!" Elayne barked, "He's fine, I can sense him so chill. But would someone kindly tell me what the _hell_ has happened in barely a week of my absence?"

She now turned her violet eyes to Kayura, a thoughtful look in them, "Because Ro muttered that this happened "again." So what have I missed?"

"I called you last night because of this," the Lady Ancient answered. "It's happened twice before, well that we've seen. The first time the five of them were sparring, all I sensed was a small amount of pain coming from their link and then they were out cold. The second time two of them were practicing and the others were off doing their own things…"

"But, the pain came again, and they were all out not a minute later," Sekhmet finished with a grave frown.

"I know that your powers haven't fully realigned yet, and that when you're busy with work you can't pick up on their state as keenly," Kayura murmured, biting her lip. "I just didn't know what else to do, and Anubis-tachi couldn't think of anything either."

"It's fine Kay," Elayne acknowledged, though she was frowning as she looked at the Seasonals. "Minna, is there something you _want_ to tell me?"

There, the four of them had flinched. Someone else might have been able to pass it off as blinking, but she _knew_ better. Her eyes narrowed, "This has happened to you as well?"

Kayura looked shocked and turned her eyes to Anubis, scowling at him for failing to point that out. The Spring Seasonal immediately turned his head from her and let out a sigh.

"How often?" Elayne pressed, knowing getting an answer out of the Seasonal Warriors was about as much fun as pulling teeth. She turned her eyes to Summer's bearer, "Dais! I need to know what is going on, in order to figure out how to fix it."

"Five times," the white-haired man grumbled out.

Cale rolled his eyes skyward, "Within the past week and a half."

"WHAT?!" Kayura screeched at them, "And you _neglected_ to tell me about this why?"

Elayne tuned the arguing out, trying to think it through what could possibly cause this? Collapsing for no apparent reason? It certainly was not an enemy trick that much she was certain of. But, then what?

She felt that Rowen was about to tense again, and came back to the world around her, she gently tightened the grip on his shoulder, "Calm down, Ro. What's wrong, what got you so worked up?"

"I-" he hesitated a moment, and then blurted it out. "Woke up after seeing a fight I know didn't happen, at least not this time. And I think-" Rowen's tone went quiet, "I died."

Elayne's eyes went wide as she removed her hand from his shoulder. That statement alone was enough to permit it all to click into place, and she immediately became angry. "Damn it!"

No one had missed the change in her attitude, and Sekhmet queried, "I take it that you just figured out the answer to our problem?"

She gritted her teeth together in aggravation, violet eyes flashing, "It's the armors! They're pushing for you to remember. _**Damn**_ them."

Elayne had a fist clenched in anger, and her eyes now narrowed into thin slits, "Rekka is in _for_ it."

"But what did-" Anubis began, clealy confused.

The Secondary Guardian managed to calm her temper, "Not Ryo, the armor."

She gave Rowen's shoulder an encouraging squeeze, "I know what you saw, and I am sorry that you had to see it. Try not to worry about it I'll take care of this."

The Ronin of Strata let out a chuckle, feeling slightly better, "I have no doubt. Do me a favor though? Check on Sage first? There was something I felt, and I-"

He left the sentence unfinished, not quite sure how to put any of it into words, but luckily she seemed to understand.

"Not a problem," she said ruffling his hair and then teleporting out.

Rowen's heart nearly jumped out of his chest, and he let out an embarrassed sigh, "I wish she wouldn't do _that._ Sometimes I forget she can…Heh…"

* * *

_A/N: Well, here is Chapter One for your viewing pleasure. Aren't I nice? They get to deal with problems right off the bat. Poor Ronin, or not. Is this going a little too fast? Maybe, I don't know; Book 3 had it's good parts for me to write but overall I think it falls a little flat. Granted "Journey Through the Past" does nothing more than fill the gap between Book 2: Unwelcome Answers and Book 4: Ending of an Era Volume I, so I guess it's kinda the "intermission story" :) Oh and welcome back all my old readers and hello to the new ones! Now that the first chapter is posted, let the insanity continue! :)_

_LG _


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two:**

**Written: March 22, 2008**

**Typed Up: April 1, 2008**

**

* * *

  
**

Sage's eyes were tightly shut as he continued to sit underneath the old worn tree…It was just inside the protective barrier, but well outside of the mansion's sight.

The swordsman's breathing was erratic and his thoughts were largely askew. He tried desperately to clear his mind and focus. The Ronin of Halo's mind, luckily, had not been as badly shocked as Strata's bearer.

Sage had awoken in much of the same manner, but it had only taken him a few minutes to realize what had happened. They had been fighting with Raikken, and he recalled the searing pain that had shot through the Ronin link…Before his body had gone numb.

But, that was not what bothered him. It was not the thing that currently had his thoughts so out of place. No, what was currently upsetting him? It was what had caused him to jerk out of the sleep he'd been in.

Somehow, the Ronin of Halo knew that the dream had been nothing more than a vision of the past. What sickened him was the fact it had actually happened, because he _knew_ it had.

He and Strata's bearer had been fighting off an enemy, one he did not recognize now, but had to have been familiar with back then. The fight had gone on for a while, Sage had assumed this, because he had _felt_ the exhaustion.

Then all of a sudden a low chuckling had reached his ears, and the two had tensed before a bo had slammed down into him.

…And then a tanto had gone for his throat…

"Nii-chan?"

Sage's labored breathing now quieted, and he reached up to place a hand overtop of the one currently resting against his cheek.

Elayne staid kneeling in front of him like that, making no further queries and not moving until she knew he had calmed down enough for her to pull back. The Ronin of Halo opened his eyes and gave her a small grin.

"Thanks imouto," he finally said, the emotions quieting. He understood that she had only pulled him out of the thoughts that were threatening to consume him, and done nothing more than that.

"Are you okay?" She stood up now, pulled her hand back.

The swordsman hesitated a moment but finally nodded, "I just…What I saw? I only know it was a past life." He shook his head, but the emotions were coming back. "But then…"

Sage looked up at her, confusion, alarm, and perhaps a small trace of fear lurking within his violet depths.

Elayne now worriedly frowned, placing a hand on his shoulder trying to push the emotions off him further, "Take it easy, okay?" She gave a forlorn sigh, "Yeah, past life. I'm sorry you shouldn't have seen anything, let alone that particular memory. It's the armors, their meddling where they shouldn't be."

"I see, they want us to remember and are going about it the wrong way," the swordsman slowly got to his feet, though his vision spun at the movement anyway.

The girl lightly grabbed him by the arm to steady him, "Nii-chan?"

"I-" Sage paused and grit his teeth together then forcefully shoved the images from his head. Everything settled after that, and he calmly remarked, "There, that's better."

The Secondary Guardian gave a light chuckle at him, letting her hand slide away and then falling into step next to him as he had started to head back for the mansion.

"So then," the swordsman hesitated a moment before asking his question, "Where were the others?"

Elayne let out a sigh, hand immediately going to and resting on the jewel about her neck, "I mentioned it before, that there were lifetimes in between what the Council and Elders called the "main lifetimes," for their lack of creativity to come up with a better way to distinguish between the two types."

The sarcasm that had been in her voice moments before now vanished, "At any rate, the lives that occurred between those "main" ones were many. And most times you were not always born into them at the same time, if it all."

"So, only Rowen and I?" Sage tilted his head at her.

"Mhm," her eyes flickered with what looked like hurt. "As a rule of thumb, you're not supposed to remember anything but the main lifetimes. Yet, the armors retain full memory like I do. I just have to get them to back off before they do any more harm."

The swordsman looked at her with a perplexed look on his face, and she then elaborated, "Remembering a past before you are ready is painful, it's why you and the other's keep 'collapsing.' Normal people can't remember past lives at all because it drives them mad; you all just _barely _manage to escape from that happening. But, currently your bodies are not prepared for the strain. And, seeing yourself die in the past? Sometimes the mind can't differentiate…"

"Meaning if we see ourselves die in the past we could as well?"

"No," she shook her head and rubbed at her eyes. "If you experience the moment before, the pain during, and the second just after you died…You could."

Sage offered her a small smile trying to turn the subject to something else, "Not what you had in mind is it? You have been trying to give us our space all along, and ever since you revealed the fact you were Universe, you've been trying to do that more so. Yet barely a week and something like this happens."

"Don't remind me," Elayne's violet eyes narrowed. "Wildfire is _dead_."

Sage's eyes went slightly wide, "But, what did he do?"

The girl made a frustrated noise in the back of her throat. Why did everyone immediately assume she was out for Ryo's blood? Geez!

"Not your dumbass leader, his armor!"

"Oh."

* * *

The girl had easily filled the swordsman in on the fact the archer was awake and had gone into near hysterics when he realized Halo's bearer was nowhere to be found.

She had been sure to make a comment that tried to paint it in an "off color" light and in return for that Sage had pushed her chortling form towards the house.

Grumbling about how he had wished she'd staid at work instead of come here to bother them.

The two of them entered the house without really announcing themselves, but really there was no need to do so. The others had been waiting on them to get back.

Rowen looked up and let out a sigh of relief at seeing Sage, "You had me concerned."

"Sorry," the swordsman murmured flopping down in the sofa. "I couldn't breathe…Couldn't clear my head. So, I did the first thing that was able to come to my mind. Didn't mean to worry you, though."

"Aw!" Elayne cooed at the two of them, "You are so _cute_ together. What a perfect match!"  
"EH!" Both archer and swordsman fell out of their chairs and then shot her a shared death glare. She was just too busy chortling to care.

Dais merely shook his head at her, "You're in some mood, An-chan."

"It's four-thirty in the morning," she dully commented. "I've pulled a double shift, in addition to working five hours of overtime within the past four days alone. I am _tired_, my sarcasm tends to fly off the handle, can't help it."

"Not like you'd want to," Rowen snorted out, having sunk back down into the chair.

The girl merely gave a smirk in response to that.

Suddenly she gave her arm a thoughtful rub, "Cye still out of it?"

"The last time I poked my head in the room was an hour ago and he hadn't budged," Sekhmet answered, "But we've seen what happened with Halo over there."

Sage merely gave the Fall Seasonal a look for that comment.

"And Ryo and Kento did eventually go back to sleep," Kayura brought in now. "You left before I could say anything about it."

"Ah, sorry," Elayne sheepishly rubbed at the back of her neck. "Their whole being over-protective of me has rubbed off."

"Sure it has," Anubis chuckled out.

The girl turned her attention back to the Ronin of Strata and Halo who were starting to doze, "Come on, back to bed with you two."

"No argument from me," Sage murmured out getting to his feet, and slightly stretching stiffening limbs. "See you later minna."

"Likewise," the archer yawned out with a small wave.

Elayne merely shook her head at the two Ronin and followed them up the stairs; she made sure they got settled into their beds, before closing the door behind her.

Overall, the Secondary Guardian was immensely displeased and for a number of reasons. First off, the fact that this problem had been going on and she had not any knowledge of it until Kayura called it to her attention.

Secondly, the fact the armors were trying to mess in something they had no right to be toying with. No one had the right to mess with her charges memories…Council, Elders, or otherwise. It was _wrong_.

The main thing that was bothering her about the whole thing, was the fact the armors were showing the Ronin certain memories they had no _reason_ to see. It was bad enough they were showing the off-lifetimes…But the _deaths_? What were they thinking!

She knew that blame fell solely to the Wildfire armor for this, with its bearer having full memory it would begin to push at the other armors to make their bearers remember. It was not anything new, but this was the first time the armors had so forcefully pushed for their bearers to remember.

"Still, why wouldn't Cye have woken up by now?" Suddenly all the color drained from the girl's face.

"Please don't tell me," Elayne whispered out, "It'd choose that memory." She shook herself, swore, and then dashed down to the end of the hall.

* * *

A disgruntled huff reached her ears and she drew pause and looked at the shadow she had disturbed.

Black Blaze opened an eye and gave a flick of his tail _'It's too __**early**__ to be running around like that.'_

"Pah," Elayne snorted out, saying dismissively, "You're getting _old_ Kouken."

_ 'This coming from the person that calls herself a __**fossil**__?' _the tiger idly retorted, closing his open eye.

The girl gave a maniacal grin, "Mhm yes, but at least _I _don't happen to act it."

Black Blaze gave a snort, before he realized what she said and both his eyes popped open, _'What was that?!'_

Elayne chortled, unable to help herself. The look on the cat's face was simply too much, "Oh, I got you with that one. That's what happens when you try to out-smart a smart-ass."

_'Don't you have charges to bother?' _the black tiger grumbled out.

"Aw, you don't love me anymore?" she gave a sniff, wiped at her eyes with her sleeve before blandly stating, "When _don't_ I? I swear I can't leave them alone for five seconds without something happening to them. Ugh, I need a new line of work."

_'Agreed,'_ the tiger huffed out. _'Preferably one where it doesn't involve you interrupting my sleep before the sun even decides to wake up.'_

"Bite me," she said in a flat tone.

_ 'Ugh!' _Black Blaze made an awful face, _'You're too short and too skinny, you'd taste __**awful**__!'_

Elayne's eye twitched, "Kouken-Oh, if you don't shut up? I'm getting a new fur coat courtesy of you."

_ 'Point taken,'_ the tiger said, wisely going back to sleep.

"I'm going to need to find something to kill after I'm done," the girl grumbled out as she continued her walk down the hallway. "Actually, a _lot_ of things to kill."

She let out a sight through her nose, before returning her attention to the task at hand…And once more her anger flared.

* * *

_A/N: Here's chapter two. Thanks for the reviews, and as always for reading this crazy series. :) It's nice to know I'm not the only one that gets enjoyment out of it. This will probably be the last update for this month; Book 3 is much shorter than the other books and I'm barely plugging along with typing and writing up Book 5. Of course Book 4 isn't exactly short, but I would like to have Book 5 done before I start putting that up. I don't know, maybe I'll let you have Chapter 3 this month too, just to make up for the very long break. Yea to that, or nay?_

_LG  
_


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**Written: March 24, 2008**

**Typed Up: April 1, 2008**

**

* * *

  
**

Her eyes were half-lidded as she stopped in front of the two doors. The door to her left belonged to Ryo and the one on her right was Kento and Cye's room. Well, she was very tempted to just march into Ryo's room, but she refrained. Right now, it would be best to see if the other two were all right.

She lightly knocked on the door, simply to be polite, though she was hardly surprised when a meek "come in" was uttered. The girl had figured someone in the room would be awake.

Elayne entered slightly relieved to see that Torrent's bearer was indeed awake, though she was concerned as well. The Ronin of Hardrock was also conscious and his mood was just as simple to read.

"I take it," she paused a moment when they immediately whipped their heads to where she was. "They told you before passing back out?"

"About what was happening, yeah," Kento admitted, "Lassie and Ol'e Blue neglected to mention you were here though."

The girl shrugged biting down a chuckle at the nicknames, boy wait till Sage and Rowen heard about the new ones they would not be thrilled.

"Maybe they figured you'd assume I was here?" she gave a shrug of her shoulders, and dryly added, "Or they thought you'd have sensed me."

The Ronin of Hardrock gave her a wry grin, "We're only now starting to understand what to look for when it comes to your aura."

"And even at that," Cye quietly brought in, "You're normally masking your presence, anyway."

"Whoops! I forgot," the girl closed her eyes a moment, and then reopened them. "Better?"

Kento gave a nod as her presence was now visible to his mind, "Yeah. Thanks, mei mei."

The girl nervously shifted her weight from one foot to the other, and then proceeded to chew on her lip. She did not at all like what she was sensing from the two Ronin.

Sage and Rowen had been unsettled by what they had seen, near to panic at seeing what they had simple because they had not been prepared for it. But Kento and Cye were deeply troubled. Dare she think it? Upset, and horribly so.

"I'm almost afraid to ask," Elayne said, half-moan and half-serious. "What did you two see?"

The two Ronin both froze upon hearing her words and her stomach churned.

"Not that," She whispered out, having caught the thoughts before the pair could answer. "I was afraid it was that one, but why?" She let out a moan as she leaned against the wall.

"Of _all_ the things they felt the need to show you, why in Kaosu's name did it _have_ to be off lifetimes and deaths?!" The anger within her swelled, and her violet eyes sparked.

But she squelched it, turned her attention to the two Ronin and their current states of mind. They needed some form of reassurance and she only knew one way to give it.

Elayne abandoned her spot by the wall and walked over to Cye as he was closest, she placed a hand on his, "It'll be fine. I'm sorry, there was no reason for them to show you that. Try and get some sleep, okay?"

"All right," he let out a sigh, and tried to do as she suggested. He leaned back in the bed, and it was odd but he felt calmer now; sleep easily overtook him.

As Elayne walked over to Kento, his question caused her to halt. "Shouldn't _we_ be the ones apologizing? We leave you behind to pick up the pieces, every time."

"Gege," the girl allowed herself a smile as she resumed walking and then plopped down on his bed. She prodded him in the shoulder and chuckled, "You've always worried about me, about what would happen to me after you died and things restarted."

She paused a moment, the small grin still there, "I'm still here, and now so are you. It doesn't matter who is sorry for what now, that part of the story is over. We need to get through this life, that's all."

Kento frowned as he thought it over, thought of someway to protest. His frown only deepened when her smile faded.

"And if anyone needs to make apologies, it's me," Elayne murmured out. "I am more sorry for this than anyone will know or ever be able to understand. Rest, Kento."

The Warrior of Strength wrinkled his nose, starting to feel sleep encroach upon him, "Th-" He yawned, "That's cheating, you know?" He settled onto the bed.

"Don't use so much energy on us, mei mei."

"Little too late for that, Kento," she affectionately murmured before exiting the room. It wasn't a surprise that he had figured out she was tapping into her powers.

As it was her skin had already started to pale, but she pushed this and the other weakness from her mind. Calm and normally reserved Elayne was gone the moment the door closed behind her and Ryo's was flung open. The Secondary Guardian was in, and Wildfire was in _trouble_.

* * *

Ryo jumped forward startled out of the light sleep he had only momentarily fallen into. He blinked a few times, "Elayne!"

Why the heck had she just thrown the door open like that. And why was he getting the general impression she was incensed?

"How could _you?"_ She demanded in aggravation, shutting the door behind her with a greater force than with which she had tossed it open. "What were you thinking!?"

The Wildfire Ronin was more than just a little alarmed by all of this. The girl looked absolutely _pissed_ and he had no clue what he had done to cause it. Ryo did know that he dreaded finding out.

"You have got to stop this, you're going to kill them," her anger was just now starting to go back to a slow simmer. Having been 'human' for so many years prevented her from going through the blow-ups she had in the past…_Barely._

She now crossed her arms in front of her chest, the glare she was leveling at him pure acid, "What do you have to say for yourself? And no, sorry _won't_ cut it."

Ryo's jaw worked back and forth as he vainly tried to form the words and ask what he had done to earn her little tirade but nothing would come out. He was simply too shell-shocked.

"Well?" Elayne growled.

The Ronin of Wildfire, managed an "ah" just before he heard the response, _'Brother's bearers need to remember!' _And, with the sudden realization of who was getting yelled at, he toppled from the bed.

Elayne and Wildfire either didn't notice, or didn't care.

"It's not your place to decide that!" Elayne snapped, aggravation once more at the surface. "It is up to _them_. They are the only ones capable of deciding that. It isn't your place, the Council's, or the Elders!"

'_Might be true, might not be-' _the armor's tone was haughty, belligerent.

"Hold it!" Ryo bellowed overtop of the two arguing parties, having picked himself up off the floor. "You," he pointed to Elayne, "Scared the hell out of me. Save the smart ass comments."

Then he directed to his armor, "And that's what is happening to us all then? You and the others better stop."

'_Bearer-'_

"Aht!" the Ronin Leader cut it off. "Unless you want her to visit your realm and kick your ass, I'd seriously back off."

It was almost _sad_ that the Ronin of Wildfire knew her so well, but Elayne needed to be amused at this prospect later. "You asked me to protect them for you, did you not? Well, all you are doing right now is hurting them. Rekka, their pasts could destroy them if returned too soon. Please, you and the others must leave this alone."

"It is up to _them_, whether or not these warriors remember the lives," she finished.

_'Understand, will trust your judgment. We grow impatient though.'_ It went silent after that.

"Who's _them_?" the Wildfire Ronin queried, having caught her emphasizing that particular word.

Elayne let out an amused chuckle, "Their past selves. You've already been through that _Ryou._"

He rolled his eyes and remarked in an annoyed tone, "Next time you feel like chewing my armor out, a little forewarning would be nice."

"Aw, did you think I was yelling at you?" Elayne teased, before saying with a mischievous grin, "Somebody has an awfully guilty conscious."

Ryo just glared at her.

* * *

"Sorry Ry," she apologized after an awkward silence. "I still don't have complete control over my powers or emotions yet. I was just so _mad_. All I could think about was getting the armors to stop before they did something I couldn't undo."

"I understand," the Ronin Leader admitted with a nod, blinking when she flopped down on the bed next to him. He suddenly frowned, noticing how pale she was, "What did you do?"

"Sleeping spells," she murmured out in a tired voice. "The other four were so worked up I had to push the raw emotion away and implement a few light ones."

"Are they okay?" Ryo asked concern in his voice.

She gave a nod, bit down a yawn, "They are for now, it might take them a day or two to calm down completely though. The armors chose the absolute worst things to show them." The girl grimaced as she ran a hand through her hair, then closed her eyes.

He gave her a small smile, "I had guessed as much. Especially with the way you stormed in here as though you were prepared to rip Arago apart…_Again_."

"Oh, do you always have to bring that up?" Elayne pouted at him. "It was one lifetime!"

"Yes," Ryo chortled out, "And I have _never_ seen you so mad. You beat the fool senseless and then some. All because he captured us, and had us for not even an _hour_."

The girl gave a wry grin, "What can I say? Don't provoke those who need no provoking?"

"Something like that," the Ronin Leader chuckled, watching her with a frown, "Hey, are you all right?"

"Not really," she mumbled out. "This was the last thing I wanted to deal with at this point in time."

Ryo put an arm around her and pulled her into a hug, chuckling when she initially stiffened at the contact and yelped out a "what are you doing?"

"You need some reassurance right now." He was quick to become serious though, "Seriously Elayne, everything will be fine. The guys will bounce back from this easily, they normally do."

She let out a long drawn out sigh, propping her head on his shoulder, "That's not what I'm worried about Ryo. Something is off somewhere and it isn't here."

"I'm sure you'll figure it out in time," the Ronin of Wildfire soothed, releasing her from the embrace. "Why don't you go get some sleep yourself?"

"You have a point in that," Elayne warily stood up, caught her breath and balance.

Ryo looked at her in alarm, "Do you need help?"

"No, I'll be fine," the girl shook off the dizzy spell, "You catch a nap Ryo. I'll see you later."

"All right," Wildfire's bearer watched her go with a frown, before settling back underneath his covers. Well, there was _never_ a dull moment around here that was for certain.

* * *

_a/n: Another month, another chapter xD Hope you enjoy :)_

_-LG  
_


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four:**

**Written: March 24, 2008**

**Typed Up: April 2, 2008**

* * *

It was not more than ten o'clock that morning as the Seasonal of Fall bit down a yawn and rubbed at his eyes. He was definitely tired now. With the Ronin having collapsed during that fight, and it not being the first time such a thing had happened (to either group) the Seasonals had immediately become concerned.

The four older warriors had managed to lug the Ronin home, and then sat about trying to figure out what could be causing the problem. All the while poor Kayura had been agitatedly pacing a hole into the hardwood floors.

When Ryo had awoken, and not been able to recall anything that had occurred? It had just made them more worried. They couldn't risk something like this happening to all of them in the midst of a heavy fight.

It was needless to say that Sekhmet had not gotten _any_ sleep within the past twenty hours. When Elayne had explained that the armors were pressing into matters they should not have been, and that they were going to back off…It had been a cause of slight relief. However, he was still very much restless.

Hence why he could not settle down and take a nap, and it was driving him _crazy_. Sekhmet was tired and cranky, and plus his temper was pretty much shot. He flung himself into the one chair, and then propped his feet up on the table.

The Spring Seasonal was used to the mortal realm, had been easily able to readjust to being back in it once more. One of his favorite habits was reading the paper, it just suited that curiosity problem of his (which he knew wasn't going to go away anytime soon).

Though currently engrossed with the international news section, he still paused to quirk an eyebrow at his friend, "What are you doing?"

"Zoning," Sekhmet bit out at his eyes slip shut.

"Zoning or not," the red-haired man remarked as he pulled the paper back up in front of his face, "I'd move your feet off of there."

"Give me one good-" the snotty retort came.

_Thwack_.

"Ouch!" the Fall Seasonal yelped nearly falling out of the chair, before rubbing at his forehead. He looked up at the Lady Ancient, and whined, "Kay, what was _that_ for?"

"Feet off the furniture," she scolded unclenching the fist she had decked him with before walking into the kitchen.

Anubis looked up from his paper once more, saying in a bored tone, "That was the "one good" reason."

"Shut up!" Sekhmet snapped, crossing his arms in front of his chest before resuming his dozing.

"What's with the racket in here?" Cale inquired coming back from the nap he had slipped off to catch some hours ago.

"Kayura laying down the law," Anubis answered full attention on his newspaper.

The Winter Seasonal bit down a chuckle, "Ah, why didn't I guess that?" He casually slipped off into the kitchen, not bothering to prod the dozing Sekhmet happening to know better. You never caught a tiger by the tail, or messed with a pit viper…On no sleep the bearer of Fall _was_ a mamushi.

The man grabbed a cup, and then poured himself some tea, querying, "The Ronin still sleeping?"

"Mhm," Kayura looked up from the dishes she was washing. "They'll be up soon though. Elayne said the spell would wear off quickly, but that their bodies would take some extra time off, regardless."

"Ah I see," Cale murmured. "Speaking of, where is the revived Guardian? I saw her come back from her nap just as I left to take mine."

Dais let out a murky chuckle, trying not to grin at the jumps he got from the two. He had this annoying habit of not being there one second and then being there the next. He was certain one day someone was going to _strangle_ him for the trick, but until then he would take immense pleasure in causing people to jump out of their skin.

"Where else? As far away from us as she can be, without having to leave completely."

"She cannot help it," Anubis brought in, yes his head was practically buried in the newspaper, but he was always paying attention to what was going on around him. Regardless of what he happened to be doing at the time. "Elayne remains unsure of herself. While we gave Universe her freedom to do as she needs, she does not know what sort of distance to maintain around us."

"Being a normal mortal amongst them for so long has probably put her ill at-ease," Cale admitted with a nod, agreeing with Spring's bearer. "And I have to say, that I think the Ronin handled the shock quite well."

"Perhaps because Wildfire already knew who she was, and was able to put their minds at ease quicker," Dais added in, as he started to dry and put away some of the dishes Kayura had already washed.

"Or," the Lady Ancient offered unplugging the drain and letting the water seep out, she then dried her hands on a towel nearby. "It was because the fact she was Elayne. Someone they grew up with, knew, and trusted. And, possibly some of what they felt for Universe leaked through in some way, making it easier for them to accept."

Sekhmet made an irritated noise in the back of his throat, and growled out as he cracked an eye open, "Shut up. I am _trying_ to sleep."

* * *

"Hate to bring this to you Nao," Elayne supplied in amusement as she walked into the house. "They are physically incapable of shutting up. Further, that's what you have a _room_ for."

Sekhmet now opened both eyes and offered her a sly grin, "Oh? Really? And here I always thought-"

"You finish that sentence, and my size seven-and-a-half will be up your rectum," the girl flatly commented.

"Aw," Sekhmet gave a pout at her, "You're crankier than I am!"

Elayne rolled her eyes at his remark, but did not reply to it. Instead, she said to the other four, "Shouldn't you all try and catch a nap?"

"Did so," was the chorused response.

The girl gave a loose shrug of her shoulders, the only reason she had made the suggestion was because she could feel the exhaustion coming from them, "Okay then. But if you fall over from fatigue and smash your head against the wood floor, thereby cracking your skull open, I'm not healing you."

"Nice," the Summer Seasonal snorted out. "And you're supposed to be-"

"The Secondary Guardian for you guys," Elayne cut him off with a smirk. "Kayura happens to be the main."

"Sage was right," Cale mumbled in complaint, "We _are_ doomed."

The Lady Ancient opened her mouth to snap back a reply, while Elayne threw the Winter Seasonal a dirty look…Low chuckling caused them to pause.

"Yes, I am smarter than I look," Sage smoothly supplied as he came down the last step.

Kayura was quick to focus her attention on the Ronin of Halo, "You feeling better? You certainly look well again."

Halos' bearer gave a nod, "I'm fine now."

"Same," Rowen cheerfully echoed.

"Likewise for us," Cye brought in as he and Kento came down the stairs.

"Leaving Ryo," Anubis mused aloud.

Elayne quirked an eyebrow at this, "He's been outside for the past hour."

Everybody stopped what they were doing, and then let out a collective sigh. The Secondary Guardian had a similar reaction, except she was moaning at her charges.

"I can't believe you didn't _sense_ him," she grumbled in complaint. "At least one of you should have!"

"Not their fault," a chipper Ryo brought in. "I've been blocking them. Playing around with that ability since November."

Elayne gave him a look that said she was very unimpressed, and to further that she remarked in a bored tone, "I _know_. I also wish you would stop doing that."

"Not my fault I know how to use my abilities," the Wildfire Ronin commented, and then tried to put an arm around her. He had just finished training, and was sticky and sweaty and knew she'd react well to the action.

"No you don't!" Elayne skidded to the side all too easily, she made a face at him, "Go shower."

"Wanna join me?" He slyly asked, and much to the shock of teammates.

The girl gave a derisive snort, "In your _dreams_!" Rather quick to add, "Rowen and Kayura can go first."

"**_Elayne_**!" the pair shrieked at her, while the others doubled over in laughter.

The archer's cheeks were more than pink, and he leveled a hateful glare at her which she simply grinned at. Kayura's eyes were narrowed at her, and this caused her to snigger. She was going to have _fun_ teasing the two of them about this for weeks to come. After all, she happened to _know_ something that only a select few did.

Once the laughter subsided, she took a glance at her watch, "Mm, well if there aren't anymore emergencies that require a universal interference, I'll go ahead and jet."

The Warrior of Strength immediately frowned at hearing this, "Mei mei, why are you always in such a rush to bail?"

"And don't say you aren't," Cye brought in to prevent her from making a protest. "Because you know you are."

Elayne let out a sigh, "Sorry, I'm just too used to being removed from the situation that way it doesn't look like I'm helping you. I've been doing it for so long I just can't stop doing it so abruptly. You gave me my freedom, but I'm too used to clinging to your shadows. Never mind the fact, this time I had to keep myself and Universe separate so you didn't peg me." She shrugged, "Give me a week or two, I'm working on it."

"You're just paranoid," Rowen teased her. "We aren't going to bite, ya know."

Instead of the statement having the desired affect, which was to get her to relax, she become remorseful, "Heh."

She walked over to the door, slipped back on her shoes, "I'm afraid if you knew certain things? You guys would do more than just bite."

They all simply stared at her, not understanding her comment, and none quite sure if they even wanted to understand it.

"Anyway, I'm going to try and contact Kaosu," the girl's hand now rested on the doorknob. "The armors have stopped pushing at your individual memories, but that won't stop them from removing the blocks placed on your power. They've already started to do that, and now that I told them they couldn't interfere with the memories I'm worried they'll take those power blocks down twice as fast."

She opened the door now, "I need to see if he thinks it'd be a good idea to help you relearn the abilities you've forgotten. Preferably, before they start meddling again. I'll talk to you…Later, I guess." With that she was out the door, letting it shut quietly behind her.

There was a deep frown etched into the blond swordsman's face, his brows were furrowed, "I don't think I like the implication in her earlier words."

"Same here," Cye mumbled in agreement. Afraid that if they knew they would do more than just bite? What on earth was she not telling them, _this_ time?

"Then, perhaps that is the real reason she stays away," the Spring Seasonal mused. "Fear that she will reveal something that could cause potential harm."

"Maybe," Rowen acknowledged. Ryo merely gave a shrug of his shoulders and headed off to take his shower.

Kento made a face, "I have this gut feeling that her not saying anything is going to be worse than if she had told us."

…How right the bearer of Hardrock was…

* * *

_A/N: [1] Mamushi: It is a pit viper, and also called the "Japanese mamushi."_

_[2] This would be in inches folks, was too lazy to convert it…Heh_

_Thanks to Anna for leaving a note reminding me to update this! xD I completely forgot. Book 5 has been stalled for months now, but I'm hoping to get my momentum back to finish it soon. *keeping fingers crossed*_

_Till the next time!_

_LG  
_


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five:**

**Written: March 25, 2008**

**Typed Up: April 3, 2008**

**

* * *

**

Nearly-black eyes were glued to the wall in front of him, as he continued with his exercises. The being held a hand behind his back as he used the other to raise and lower himself against the floor.

Akemliek let out a loose breath before switching hands, and returning to his one-handed push up. His brows were creased in concentration as he let himself focus solely on the exercises.

The events of the last two months, however, were currently weighing on his mind slightly interfering with his normal training. It mattered little though he could tune his attention to them and still carry out one of his daily rituals.

He could not help but be impressed by the warriors and how well they had fought. What got to him even more was the fact that they had _all_ done well. Not just one group over another but all of them.

The Ronin and Senshi had accepted the fact they were walking into a trap, and had been prepared to deal with the consequences. At first, they had been taken aback by the separation from the respective groups but were quick to recover.

All in all? Akemliek was exceedingly pleased with the development. They had grown up this time, acquired the knowledge of how to use the powers so easily resting at their fingertips, and how to work together despite enormous odds.

"It's amazing how much humans can improve," Akemliek muttered to himself, as he now got to his feet in order to stretch out his arms.

He stopped this and then rolled his shoulders in order to prevent them from stiffening up. Akemliek paused in this to reach up and tuck a stray strand of hair behind his ear. Rotten bangs, they were always getting in his way. And even if he cut the blasted things, they just grew back anyway.

Akemliek's eyebrows shot up as Thanos stalked into the room and then threw himself in a chair landing with a thud.

"Raikken mess up again?" the being queried. He already knew the answer to the question, but he was simply trying to be polite.

"When _aren't_ they?" Thanos gritted out, holding his head in his hands, refraining the odd temptation to yank on his hair.

"You saw what other help I had," Akemliek pointed out to the unspoken question. "They're better than those "mwahaha I shall gloat as I fail to become ruler of all" morons."

"True," the ice demon relented with a sigh. "But do they have to be _this_ bad?"

"They could be worse," the being admitted with a shrug of his shoulders.

It was amazing that Thanos still had eyebrows with the way they kept jumping up, "How do you figure that one?"

"Well, let's look at how badly they bungled the reversal incantation," Akemliek offered up, "Did you realize it is very similar to another one, and that if they had misread the last line, instead of freeing me from the seal and restoring my power…They would have _shrunk_ me?"

"You're joking!" the ice demon out and out gaped. "That is _not_ possible, even the Raikken-" Thanos stopped mid-sentence and thought about, no actually they could have done such a stupid thing.

Meaning Akemliek would have ended up about a foot tall. The ice demon immediately snerked, and help up a finger, "Master…I need a minute."

He got up from the chair and walked out of the cavern, and started _laughing_ once he figured he was out of earshot. He wasn't though, and Akemliek failed to be impressed.

Ten minutes later and Thanos continued his howling, while Akemliek's eye had slightly started to twitch. He failed to see what was so funny.

"I should murder him," the being muttered in annoyance. "I really don't _need_ him that badly."

What had Thanos in stitches? All he could see was the five Ronin approaching a miniature Akemliek, who would comment with a squeaky voice, "You have come to face me. Now you all will die!"

Wildfire's response would be similar to the lines of 'wtf', before the Ronin Leader would comment, "What kind of joke is this?"

Hardrock would just beam, "_Football!_" He would then proceed to drop-kick the small Akemliek, with Wildfire cheering him on and excitedly engaging in the game.

Torrent would be in absolute stitches, most likely using Halo to support himself because he'd be laughing to hard. Strata would make the ever so obvious comment, "Yo Akemliek! That's what you get for doing your minion shopping at the discount store!"

And what topped off this lovely picture? Hardrock kicking Akemliek into a ravine, thus losing "the ball" and ending the game…That was why Thanos was currently inconsolable, it was just too _funny_.

Finally, the ice demon calmed down enough and returned to the cavern face once more a mask of completely calm and seriousness, "As you were saying, Master?"

* * *

Akemliek's eye had stopped twitching, and he was rather glad for the change of subject, "Things will be fine."

Thanos' eyebrows went up yet again, and he tilted his head. "How so? Over thirty percent of the main tunnels were collapsed and we can't get the Raikken from this realm to the mortal in large numbers. The only way to get out a decent amount is through that small cavern, and the warriors could simply stand in front of it and annihilate the Raikken as they came out."

Akemliek snorted to himself, but felt no need to make mention of the fact that the warriors had indeed done such a thing before. Needless to say, that was one more Raikken blunder he didn't feel like bringing up.

The ice demon paused as he rubbed his sore knuckles, "I can only teleport a relatively small amount out of here, and it is not even enough to stir waves. And, you are still confined."

Akemliek permitted himself a chuckle, "And unable to walk the mortal realm, yes that is true. But that does not mean, I cannot do anything."

Thanos immediately seemed revived, as he hopefully inquired, "You have a plan?" After dealing with the Raikken which had caused a failing tunnel to completely collapse, he'd take anything at this point.

"Actually," the being was grinning now. "An old ally of mine does. Thanos, may I present Shinshou?"

The ice demon quickly directed his attention to the center of the room, steel-green eyes flickering slightly as he looked over the hazy form, "Isn't he?"

"Current leader of the Nether Spirits," the spirit acknowledged with a nod, for he looked no different than them. Only his robes were different, which were an off-shade of black.

"I speak to you now, through a communication orb given to Akemliek-sama quite some time ago," Shinshou went on. "Though Talpa was expunged from the Youjakai, we and the dynasty soldiers have remained. Kayura-hime implanted a leader to control the other spirits, for if left without a leader we could destroy much."

"Meaning in simple terms you are on our side?" Thanos queried with a raised eyebrow.

Shinshou nodded, "I have always been one to align myself with the greater power. I have offered my services to Akemliek-sama in the past."

"And he wants to do so now," Akemliek brought in, as he took off his wrist guards. "The plan is entirely his, and I happen to think it is a sound one."

"Oh?"

Shinshou smirked as Thanos expectantly looked to him, "What do you know of cusaltas?"

The ice demon stared at him blankly, before looking at Akemliek with both eyebrows sharply raised. The look on his face was easily translatable into a question: a _**what**_?

The being gave another chuckle, but quickly became serious, "I'll explain it later. But in short, we need the Ronin, Elemental and Seasonal, in the Nether Realm in order to take advantage of the current situation."

"However before I can put this plan into action, I need assurances," Shinshou said.

"Like what?" Thanos was already rather suspicious of this set up. First, he did not _trust_ beings that had formerly worked for Talpa, even if it had originally worked for Akemliek. Second, he did not like it when he had to put his neck on the line for someone of such a nature.

But, Shinshou's response had Thanos mildly surprised.

"Universe must be dealt with. If in top form like she is right now, she can easily subvert what needs to be done."

The spirit paused, "I must go before my absence has been noticed. It is a pleasure to work for you again, Akemliek-sama." With a bow, the spirit was gone.

Thanos now turned to stare at his master, "Can you explain to me what I just missed, please?"

"The Nether Spirits cannot be gotten rid of completely, but nor could they be left uncontrolled. Kayura appointed one to direct them, as they will only listen to their own kind, and luckily it was Shinshou."

Akemliek took pause, "He has been of valuable aide to me in the past. You see, murmurings had reached Youjakai that I was free, and thus he was quick to seek me out."

"Ah," the ice demon commented in understanding, and waited for the being to continue.

"Shinshou has discovered a way to potentially increase the warriors strength, by forcing certain memories from this life to return, thereby providing as eventual catalyst for their full memories to come back. In order for Shinshou's plan to work though, Universe cannot be at full power."

"I think she's meddled enough as it is," Thanos commented, adding, "She could do with a time-out."

"Agreed, while she has always been a point of intrigue, this time around I cannot afford her to realize what my true goal is," Akemliek said.

The ice demon frowned, "So then what do we do?"

"Universe's power still greatly relies on the warriors. But the best way to ensure she loses what strength she has due to that is to plant doubt amongst them…And have it directed solely at her. It should effectively cripple her."

"I'm listening," Thanos tone of voice was calm and even, "What do I need to do?"

* * *

_A/N: Long time no update xD I did get a reminder but simply didn't have the time to put up the chap; so to make up for not getting one last month you get two this month; enjoy!_

_LG_

_1 The scene in this chapter; where Akemliek comments the Raikken could have shrunk him…Comes from a comic my partner in crime, Yesterday's Tonic, did where the Raikken bungled the line and did indeed shrink the great mighty Nysantic. It is absolutely hysterical, and since she suggested I make mention of it? I did. If you would like to see it, go to deviantArt and look for the artist PyromaniacFeline17 the comic can be found in her 'scraps' section._


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six:**

**Written: March 26 2008**

**Typed Up: April 3, 2008**

**Two Days Later**

**

* * *

**

Ryo let out what sounded like a strangled sigh before returning to his morning warm-ups. It had been bothering him for a while now, but he just could not understand what that might be.

As he slowly moved through one of the routines he happened to know by heart, he tried to focus…But it was impossible to do so…And once more his thoughts swept him away.

It was a number of things really…The more he went through each day having complete memory while the others didn't he became restless…If not slightly anxious. He was so worried he'd say something that might inadvertently trigger something locked away.

Then, there was something else that was bothering him…Memories he knew came from this lifetime, but seemed somehow out of place. They didn't make sense to him and he didn't know why.

"Ryo?"

Sage became concerned when his friend did not respond right away, "Ryo, are you all right?"

The Wildfire Ronin snapped back to the world around him with a sudden jerk, not having realized he'd been standing idle for so long, "Yeah. Just thinking."

"Care to share?" a cheerful Cye brought in, before dryly adding, "Or just brood over it until we go to Kayura for answers?"

"Oh ho _very_ funny," Wildfire's bearer rolled his blue eyes, looking to Rowen and Kento who had just joined them. "Its just," He paused and frowned, "Something's been bothering me."

"What _else_ is new?" the Warrior of Strength remarked in amusement. "If you're not bugged, you're fretting over the fate of the world. So, what great calamity is about to befall us _this_ time?"

Ryo chuckled at the attempt at humor, and calmly responded, "It's nothing that is going to happen. I think it's something that already has."

"Oh?" Rowen tilted his head and hopped onto the porch railing as a makeshift seat. "Past life, is it?"

"No, we've been over this already. I'm not sharing that kind of stuff, To, you have to remember it on your own," the Ronin Leader replied with a chuckle. "Its this lifetime, and that's what is bothering me."

"Ryo, for pities sake, spit it out before I _wring_ your neck," Cye nonchalantly stated as he calmly sat down.

The other three could only stare at him, and Ryo bit down the laugh dying to escape him. Part of Shin's personality had started to come out into the Torrent Ronin apparently. That was rather amusing, he wondered what Universe would think about that?

Now the amusement faded, and Ryo said what was on his mind, "I think she was around during our past fights."

"Who?" Rowen blinked sounding confused.

Wildfire's bearer sighed through his nose, "Universe."

"Wah?" was the only intelligible response Hardrock could immediately offer before he came out of his stupor. "How's that possible, Ry? Elayne was in America during the entire war with Talpa."

"He's got a point," the bearer of Halo conceded with a nod. "Even for the ones she could have been present for-"

"Hey, time out!" The Ronin of Wildfire protested, "I'm not saying it as a personal attack, ya know?" He was blatantly amused though to see that the two men were already jumping to her defense even if he hadn't steered the conversation the way he could have.

"Ya, what's a matter with you two?" Rowen questioned.

Cye added in, "You've been overtly protective of her lately."

Both had offered sheepish smiles to Ryo's comment, but to Rowen's question and Cye's statement they merely lifted their shoulders in a half-shrug. The four of them didn't get it, but Ryo did.

Seiji and Shuu had always been protective of Universe…It had been like that for so long, he could barely remember why. Yet, he recalled Shuu's words to him once…That he could sense that while she appeared cold and indifferent she needed to be looked after. He had also joked he had this bad habit of taking in strays.

Seiji had gravitated towards her, because they were so similar in the way they had been taught and raised. The swordsman had remarked that she understood him, and that he was more than able to reciprocate.

Ryo could not remember a point in his memory where the three of them were not within the same space. One of his favorite recollections was when Shuu and Seiji were sitting on the grass and Universe lay sprawled out on the stone railing above them, the overall expression on her face clearly signifying she was uninterested.

The two had been animatedly talking about something, and as he had approached they had stopped. He had raised an eyebrow, jokingly asked if they were talking about him. Universe had responded that why bother with such a boring topic, and then paused commenting that maybe the two had been talking about him because the blather was anything but interesting.

He could still remember Seiji and Shuu lighting up like Christmas trees and turning their heads to yell at the Scout, who merely gave a disinterested yawn, and rolled around so that she was no longer facing them.

From what Ryo knew, Sage and Kento had always been close to Elayne, and he couldn't help but wonder if the armors had given them a slight nudge there. Oh well, all he could do was guess for now. He still found it funny they were so ready to protect her though.

"It's just something that has been on my mind lately," Ryo murmured leaning back in the whicker chair he had originally stationed himself in. "Without the constant fighting, I've had plenty of time to go over things…And I've been going over a lot. I seem to recall Uni's presence where it shouldn't have been."

Now he let out a sigh, "Dunno. Maybe it _is_ a past lifetime I'm recalling, and one of the off ones."

"Has to be," the Torrent Ronin said. "What else could it be?"

Ryo kept his mouth shut as the others gave murmurs of 'that had to be it' the rest simply couldn't be possible. He remembered her presence, he had sensed it during the war with Talpa at odd intervals, and even during the other issues he recalled a presence brushing across his senses that felt oddly familiar.

He was not going to force the issue with them though, as he was reluctant to point out what such implications would mean. It would have meant…Universe had the potential to intervene back then.

Little did Ryo know just how _much_ she had.

* * *

Cye walked back into the house not more than twenty minutes later, discussion over and training session for the day complete. The Ronin of Torrent rolled his shoulders, to keep them from tightening, as he walked off to take a shower.

Fifteen minutes after this, he entered the room that had been converted into a makeshift art studio. It wasn't much, just an art easel, a drawing desk…A cabinet full of supplies…Okay, so maybe it was a _little_ much.

In any case, he had been commissioned to do a piece on the Shinjuku Central Park and that was what he had been working on for the past week. He had finished cleaning up the line-art the day before, having based it on several dozen reference photos he had been given to work with.

Currently, he was working on painting in the base colors. Cye picked up his brushed, dipped it, and then lightly slipped it across the paper. Oil paints happened to be his favorite to work with.

Working on the line-art always required him to pay strict attention, but when it came to painting he could easily allow his thoughts to drift. It just came naturally to him. It was probably due to all the pottery he had done over the years.

As he worked on painting, Cye had to wonder about what the Ronin Leader had been talking about earlier. Was it even possible for Elayne to have been around as Universe?

Cye finished laying one base color and moved to another. Yes…The Torrent Ronin reasoned. After all, she had intruded plenty in the past few months without revealing who she actually happened to be. In fact, Universe alone had managed to help them without their immediate knowledge.

But for her to have done the same thing during the war, and after it? The Ronin of Trust carefully switched paints, and continued with his work.

Really, he didn't see how it was feasible…Surely, if she had been around one of them would have noticed her presence. While she was exceedingly good at hiding it now, he was certain at times in the past, and with only half the ability to control such things, it had slipped.

Cye had been going to dip his brush to clean it…He dropped it in the cup with a plop. Jumping to his feet, his eyes were wide in surprise.

"He was right," sea-green eyes blinked slightly.

Torrent's bearer recalled it now…It was just after Lady Kayura and the Warlords had left for the Nether Realm, when the five of them plus Mia, Yuli, and White Blaze were playing 'ball' with the Jewel of Life…

They had been chasing the crazy tiger as he had snatched their ball and took off running. As they had gone past a certain row of buildings, he had paused feeling something brush against his senses.

Back then Cye had simply dismissed it, as he was certain Sage had done…But now…

The Ronin of Water exited the room, and walked straight into the living room, the look on the swordsman's face told him everything he needed to know.

Sage gave a nod to the unspoken question, "I realized it as well. She _was_ there."

"Do we tell Ryo?" Cye sounded worried.

The blond shrugged, "I might. If he presses then I will. I just fail to see why it is so important."

"Same here," a disgruntled Kento commented flopping down on the sofa next to Sage.

Torrent's bearer was amused, "You two have always been defensive of Elayne. But, dare I say it? Ever since she revealed she was Universe, you've become worse."

The bearer of Halo uncomfortably shifted, his lips pressed into a thin line. His reasons for being protective of Elayne weren't all that abnormal. She had become a part of his family, whether she liked it or not, and it wasn't something he'd willingly back down on. It also didn't happen to be something he felt the need to discuss.

Hardrock's bearer on the other hand was more willing to answer, "Even if it wasn't Elayne, that wouldn't change anything." He looked to Torrent's bearer, "Didn't you see Universe's eyes? There was too much raw emotion in them, too much hurt and misplaced guilt."

Kento let out a sigh as he continued, "I felt bad for her. But finding out she and mei mei are one in the same? Sorry if I go psycho protective brother."

"What he said," Sage murmured, adding with a sly grin, "Just not how he said it."

The Warrior of Strength swatted at the blond swordsman who merely chuckled at the action, paying it no more heed than that.

Cye merely shook his head at the pair, before his head snapped to the door, "Thanos."

"Let's go," Sage announced already on his feet, Kento not more than a step behind him.

The minute the three touched grass the subarmor formed around them…A second later they were gone, moving at speeds unfathomable to the normal human eye.


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven:**

**Written: March 27, 2008**

**Typed Up: April 4, 2008**

* * *

Thanos had been sitting idly in a tree for what felt like hours. In all reality it could not have been more than two. He was merely waiting for the Ronin of Wildfire to pause in his mid-afternoon jog…Which tended to occur at the same spot everyday the Ronin Leader ran.

Right on time…The ice demon let the walls masking his presence drop just as the Wildfire Ronin came to a halt.

Ryo let out a sigh as he paused to take a break. Sure, it had been a couple of weeks since the fighting in Akemliek's domain…And the Jewel of Life had healed him and gave him some strength back. Yet, there was a good chunk of that energy missing which was only slowly starting to return to him now.

It was definitely annoying. He was tiring out far quicker than what he should have, he merely prayed that no serious fighting would occur. Ryo knew that he would most likely be useless otherwise.

All of a sudden, the Ronin Leader jumped back his subarmor immediately forming around him. His blue eyes narrowed into a hateful stare, "Thanos?"

The ice demon calmly slipped from the tree he'd been perched in, a bored expression on his face, "Greetings Wildfire. Feeling better?"

"What's it to you?" Ryo growled out.

"I'm not challenging you to a rematch if you're not at a quarter strength," Thanos snorted, rolling his eyes. Honestly, he would have thought his reasoning would be obvious.

Wildfire's bearer only narrowed his eyes further, "Oh don't worry! I'm fine."

Ryo sprung into action immediately, reaching out and clipping the ice demon with a hefty right-hook.

Thanos quickly recovered though, bringing up his arms to block the oncoming fury of punches. He casually slipped a foot past Ryo's , and gave a hard yank. As the Ronin started to fall forward, Thanos brought up his fist and rammed it into Ryo's stomach.

The ice demon moved aside, and the Ronin Leader braced his fall with his arms, then rolled and leapt back onto his feet. He barely had time to evade the next kick, but managed to pull it off. Ryo also managed to forcefully shove Thanos off balance.

Of course, this minimal upper hand didn't last very long…Because as Ryo skidded out of the range of the next kick, Thanos doubled-back and the Ronin ended up slamming into a tree.

Thanos cracked his knuckles, and made move to hit Ryo again…

"Back off!" Sage bellowed, slamming his knee into Thanos' gut, then drawing back to stand protectively in front of his leader.

Kento and Cye had moved to help their friend to his feet, but he waved them off and got to his feet on his own. To their worried looks he offered a half-smile to signify he was okay.

"Oi!" Rowen brought in, landing next to the blond swordsman. "You need a _hobby_ pal."

Thanos' lips actually twitched upward in amusement, "What, Strata? Trying to kill you isn't enough?"

He drew pause, then added blandly, "I suppose I should act more like the mindless nitwits you're so used to dealing with. And, start by going after normal mortals, instead?"

Rowen proceeded to close his open jaw with a firm snap, casting a side-ways glance to Sage who offered a minimal lift of his shoulders in a shrug.

"What do you want?" Cale demanded as he slipped out of a shadow, the look on his face clearly signifying he was unimpressed by the ice demon's presence.

"Certainly not here to deal with you and the other Seasonals, Winter," Thanos retorted.

"Too bad," Sekhmet brought in now, stepping next to Cale…His expression more disinterested than the ice demon's.

Dais, as was his due, materialized out of nowhere, "We came included in the package."

"Agreed," Anubis brought in with a nod. All the Ronin were in subarmor, simply waiting for an act of his to give them cause to call their full armors.

Kayura had her hands resting lightly at her sides, she was already in her battle gear and her jitte lay just within reach.

Her cobalt eyes flickered slightly, "Something in particular you wanted Thanos? Why else would you come alone?"

"Lady Kayura," Thanos gave an impatient sigh. "Please give me a little more credit than that." As he said this Raikken began to slip from the shadows that sat on the forest floor.

"This is the best you can-?" Sekhmet scoffed as he turned his attention to the ice demon, and then his eyes widened.

Thanos had gotten _exactly_ what he wanted…With the warriors momentarily distracted by the Raikken coming out, he launched himself at Ryo. He then grabbed the man by the throat and teleported off with him.

"Shit!" Sage swore, and then ducked to avoid getting decapitated.

* * *

The minute they reappeared, Thanos let go kicking Ryo hard in the ribs. The Ronin of Wildfire was sent careening back, but tilted his body slightly, and then used his hand to spring back to his feet.

"What's the big idea Thanos?"

The ice demon gave a snort, "You really want me to beat you in front of _them_?" He knew by making such a statement, it would immediately rile the Ronin Leader, and it did.

Ryo let out a snarl and leapt forward, using his shoulder to ram into the demon's chest…Once Thanos was off balance, the Ronin followed up with a reverse-side kick.

The ice demon let out a grunt as he hit the ground, and then quickly pushed himself upright, grabbing the Ronin's leg to prevent another kick, and then using his free hand to punch Ryo in the gut.

Sure, Thanos could draw his sword and end this rather quickly. But, that did not happen to be the point behind this fight. He needed to get Wildfire worked up enough, and to do that he had to put the man through his paces.

Once the Ronin Leader was thoroughly riled, Thanos could let things slip about Universe. Of course, he would wait for the other four to be there before he started dropping hints. In order for the overall plan to work, it had to be done this way.

The ice demon counted himself lucky that the Ronin of Wildfire was still suffering from exhaustion. It meant that his powers were not anywhere near as under control as he normally had them.

Inferno's power also was lurking close to the surface, and in that case all Thanos had to do was press the right buttons in order to get Ryo to do what they needed him to.

Only ten minutes into their fight, did Thanos sense the other four had found them and were fast approaching. That meant it was almost time for him to start working on the plan he and Akemliek had gone over.

* * *

The ice demon felt that the four Ronin were just around the bend, and gave a snort, "Something the matter Wildfire? Your focus keeps slipping."

Ryo had been sent spiraling to the ground but quickly leapt back to his feet, "There's nothing wrong with _my_ focus!"

"You sure?" Thanos taunt was subtle, just barely detectable but it was there. "Not dwelling on your Secondary Guardian, are you?"

The Ronin Leader was taken aback at hearing this, and because he let himself get distracted he landed against a tree…Biting down a yelp, and wincing. The other four quickly jumped out of the thicket…Cye moving to help Ryo back on his feet, whilst the other three stared down the demon.

Each of them had heard Thanos' words, and now Sage glared at him with violet eyes narrowed in suspicion. Just what was he up to anyway?

"You _have_ been spying on us," Rowen remarked, obviously annoyed. "I thought I sensed you lurking about."

"Impressive Strata," Thanos said with an eye roll, almost moving to go after Ryo again, only to have Hardrock's bearer come flying at him…The ice demon wisely backed off.

"You all right Ryo?" Cye queried of the Wildfire Ronin, who gave a slight nod in response to the query.

"Really you five are," Thanos gave pause, "What is it? Ah, that's it. Slow on the uptake."

Ryo's vivid blue-eyes narrowed, and he ground out, "What?"

The ice demon chuckled underneath his breath, yes Wildfire was definitely in the correct frame of mind right now. But, Thanos did need to drag this out a little further.

The Ronin of Torrent suddenly rushed him, and the ice demon slipped around, stuck out his foot so Torrent would trip over it, then brought up the other and kicked the young man in the back.

"Why you," Rowen was starting to get really irritated, but as he moved to strike, Sage pulled him back. "What?"

The blond swordsman had shifted his gaze to Ryo now, and then looked back to the archer, "Don't, he's baiting us. What do you want Thanos?"

By this point the anger and frustration was rolling off the Wildfire Ronin in waves, he had not enjoyed being toyed around with, and nor did he like the fact Thanos was still playing them for fools.

The ice demon chuckled at Halo's question, "Like I said, you're slow. How is it that you have not realized Universe was present all along? The Senshi already deduced this."

"Does it not bother you?" He said in a taunting tone. "That she was there, and did absolutely nothing?"

Kento's eyes narrowed in anger, as he let out a growl, "You know what? You're pissing me off." In a minute, the armor of Hardrock had formed around him and he withdrew his naginata, aimed it right at the ice demon.

"Beat it, Tinkerbell," the moment those words left Kento's mouth, a large blast of energy went hurdling towards the demon…If Thanos had acted but a second later, he would have been dead.

The Ronin of Hardrock was well aware that his attack had missed, and it irked him all the more, "That asshole _needs_ to die."

Strata, Halo, and Torrent were staring at the Warrior of Strength in abject shock.

"K-Kento," Cye's sea-green eyes were wide, "What did you just do?"

"Huh?" Hardrock's bearer blinked as he banished his armor.

Rowen was surprised but also excited, "You channeled your armors power without calling for it aloud!"

"Looks like Halo wasn't the only one taking down major walls on abilities," Sage remarked in amusement, before snapping his head to his leader. His violet eyes flickered a little, and for some reason he felt nervous. "Ryo?"

The Ronin of Wildfire had not moved or said a word just standing there silently stewing over what he'd just been told. The anger within him had stirred enough of Inferno's power to let him slip into a slight rage…One that was soon to get worse.

"I need to have a talk with Universe," was the only thing he said, before turning around and stalking back towards the mansion.

The other four Ronin exchanged worried and bewildered glances, and immediately followed after him. Not quite sure what was going to happen during such a talk.

When they met up with the Seasonals, Ryo finally spoke…He had been _right_ about Universe being around during their fights, and a large portion of them. The real question on most of their minds was why, and more so, why had Thanos felt the need to let that tidbit of information be known?

Of course, they were all a lot more worried about Ryo. And just what he was going to do. He wasn't acting like himself.

* * *

_A/N: Yes a very late update, but when I got the reminder (thanks to RescueMe77) I figured I'd just wait till September and give you a two chapter update. Hope it was worth it._

_LG_


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight:**

**Written: March 27-29 2006**

**Rewritten: March 30, 2008 **

* * *

Kayura had managed to make it back before her male charges, and she slammed the door behind her. Pausing a moment to catch her breath, and shove a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

"Elayne?"

The girl paused in her eating, and shoved the box of crackers back into the cupboard. Whenever she wasn't working, she was sleeping meaning she spent most of her time in her room at the Estate. But, since the armors had made a fuss she had spent the last two days at the mansion (mostly locked up in her room, or just outside of it).

She was well aware that her body was still weak, and that her powers were not much better, and the only way for her to regain either strength was through sleep.

"What is it, Kay?" Elayne asked with a frown, having heard the note of panic in her friend's voice.

Kayura let out a loose breath, before looking at her with piercing cobalt blue eyes, and pleading, "Get back upstairs. Bolt the door while you are at it."

"Huh?" violet eyes blinked in total confusion. "Kayura, what's going on?"

The woman had walked over and tried to forcefully move the girl from the kitchen, "Ryo's been pondering over it for days, but apparently they sensed you during their fights. Thanos went about and confirmed it."

"Oh," Elayne murmured, letting out a forlorn sigh. She moved aside from Kayura's attempts to get her to leave, and unclasped the jewel from around her neck laying it on the counter.

"So," she gave a rueful shake of her head, "He finally confronted the Ronin with it?"

The Lady Ancient's eyes went wide, "Y-You knew?"

"Suspected actually," the girl sighed again. "I figured it would be a matter of time. He went to the Senshi with the fact that I was around for the fights 'bout three days ago."

"Why didn't you tell me anything?" Kayura asked in bewilderment. She had long ago figured out the Secondary Guardian had been around when she should not have been, and had already talked to her about it.

Elayne gave a wry grin, "I have plenty of sins to atone for Kay, some of which I will never be able to reconcile." She closed her eyes to calm herself down, and then reopened them, "I am not a coward, and I will not run from anything. Let alone this."

Kayura made move to protest further, but both women snapped their attention to the door…And Elayne steeled herself knowing this was _not_ going to be pretty.

* * *

Ryo had not taken notice of the fact that Kayura had jogged ahead of them, nor did he seem to care about what his other comrades were doing or saying. He was focused solely on talked to Universe, but at this point the conversation was already out of his hands.

He saw that the two winced as he entered the house, his eyes narrowed into thin slits as he stared at the girl. She seemed taken aback by his anger, slightly wary-And he thought for a moment he caught a flicker of fear in her eyes but it was gone.

"**_You_**," he hissed out in a hateful tone.

Elayne had sensed it, the minute he walked in the door she _knew_ exactly what was going on. She also knew she needed to be careful, because saying the wrong thing would set him off, and she wasn't sure if that was a good idea or a bad one.

"What is it Ryo?" she asked quietly. "I think I'm entitled to know what you're going to accuse me of."

"Don't play smart with me," Ryo grounded out at her, roaring as anger swelled within him, "You were present during the war with Talpa and points after that!"

_ 'I was right after all,' _she thought with a bitter chuckle, though she continued to eye him warily, "Yes."

It was rather a surprise for her to just come out and admit it, as simple as she just had, especially in front of such anger. Surely she could feel it?

"I realized it was you I sensed," Cye said quietly, he was watching his leader with worry.

Sage gave a nod, calm, "We just weren't sure how it was possible."

"I already told you I saw your fights," Elayne sighed out to their comments, "The crystal merely allowed Universe to take over when this form was asleep or unconscious. I told Amara I wasn't proud of what I had done, nor by the means with which I did it that's also what I was referring to."

Ryo wasn't paying attention to her words, growling out heatedly, "You _lied_."

"How did I lie?" She sharply asked the irritation thick in her voice. Elayne knew now there was no way to avoid this; it was time to say the wring things. The Wildfire Ronin had no control over the situation, so she had to help him restore that control.

"You said you couldn't be present or help," he gritted out making an advance towards her.

Once more that feeling stirred…That power, but it was sharper now. The Secondary Guardian's body tensed accordingly eyes watching the Ronin Leader with more apprehension than before. She was certain of what button to press to be able to get the anger away from him, but was still slightly hesitant to push it.

Yet…She couldn't let this continue for it would do irreparable harm to him in the long run.

"Funny," Elayne was glaring at him now, her voice cold and flat. "You've told me things that I later found out were untrue. Trying to tell me I'm not permitted to be human?"

It was the wrong thing to say to anyone, let alone to the overly pissed Ronin of Wildfire. In just a few minutes he had the girl by the throat, and shoved her against the wall.

Glaring at her with flame-filled eyes, the young man snarled, "You little _bitch_. Those are two totally different things!"

Kayura noticed that he was tightening the hold around the girl's throat, "Ryo stop, you're choking her!"

"You did what you do best, ne?" The Wildfire Ronin scornfully queried; "Hid in the shadows like you always do."

When his hand constricted again, and finally cut off her air supply the girl's eyes sparked. Yes, that had been exactly what she was waiting for, him to go too far.

Suddenly, the Ronin Leader tore his hand away from her neck, having had electricity surge throughout his body. He was prepared to retaliate for this, but once free from his grasp the girl slid around him shoving him face first into the wall.

Everyone in the room now went quiet having been moments before shouting at the enraged warrior to let the girl go. Now that the roles were in reverse, they were shocked. She had moved so quickly…No one had thought her capable of moving like that. But they were also trying to understand what had possessed the Ronin of Wildfire to attempt strangling Elayne.

The Guardian hissed out a response to his earlier statement, almost slipping into her true native tongue from her rage, "Imbeciles every last one of you! Do you think I **_enjoyed sitting on the sidelines_**?"

Her eyes flashed dangerously, her pent-up anger and despair far surpassing that of the Wildfire Ronin's, "I gave up my name, my family, and my life for your ungrateful asses. I don't plan to go to purgatory for you too. **_DAMN IT!_** I've been **_LIVING_** it for the past four millennia!"

"What are you talking about?" The young man grunted out.

"That was to be my punishment if I so much as raised a finger to directly aide you," Elayne answered bitter resentment in her voice, "I couldn't get around it. The Great Council was always more strict than the Elders were."

"Coward," Ryo hissed at her, "You probably didn't even try."

Wildfire's bearer broke free from her for a moment, but she was prepared for his strike and quickly reacted to it. The girl rolled under his punch, and retaliated with a sharp kick to his midriff which sent him toppling backwards.

Luckily the Hardrock and Strata Ronin's had anticipated this and quickly caught their leader, more so to restrain him than anything else. Granted they were more than a little lost on some things, but it didn't give Ryo a right to go berserk like this.

She looked at them all, disgust in her voice as she spoke, "You actually believe what the demon told you? Typical," She gave a snort, and walked back to the kitchen. _'They won't trust me, they'll never trust me. But they're more than willing to believe everything the enemy tells them!'_

* * *

Elayne did her best to calm herself down as she turned back around, "I couldn't intervene directly. My powers were practically useless as it was. But just because I couldn't directly participate, doesn't mean I didn't help indirectly."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rowen demanded getting annoyed with her long-winded answers and current attitude.

Her eyes sparked again, narrowing as she swept the room, "Let me come right out and state it, you all should be dead right now."

"Ronin and Senshi, none of you should have made it this far," Elayne let her eyes move from Ronin to Ronin, then back to Wildfire's bearer. "But the eight of you more than the others." Elayne said eight because of the fact that Anubis had already died, and also due in part that Kayura was not affected by the condition she was vaguely referring to.

"Wh…what?" Cye finally inquired, having a hunch no one else would ask the question.

She locked eyes with Torrent's bearer exclaiming, "You can't touch something evil and not be affected by it! When Talpa absorbed you, you became a part of him and the evil that was within him should have polluted your souls. If it hadn't killed you then and there, it would have led to worse later."

"Worse later?" Cale inquired in a soft tone, wondering if what he was currently thinking was in fact the 'worse.'

"Either it would have led you to do the unthinkable," the girl stated barely keeping her temper in check, "Or it would have permitted evil to overtake you."

Her eyes were now on the Ronin of Wildfire, a scowl on her face, "And the stunt **_that_** blundering idiot pulled," she pointed at Ryo, "Left him wide open to become a vassal for Talpa's return. Then again with as long as the absorption was for, it's very likely he could've come back through any one of you."

"How…How is that possible?" Kento finally asked, trying to take all of this in.

"Dark magic like that is old, and knows few bounds. It's rooted deep, it's some of the darkest and vilest," Kayura murmured out quite pale. She knew it all too well, had learned about it and recalled Kaosu's warnings.

"Unfortunately none of that was beneath Talpa," Elayne added, saying with a slight roll of her eyes, "Dumb as he was, he knew all of the tricks and tools of the trade; he just liked to have others do things for him, he was a lazy fool."

The Lady Ancient suddenly seemed even more ill now, "You didn't did you? There's only one way to-"

Elayne chuckled, but it was devoid of warmth, "Pluto tried to talk me out of it, but I refused to hear it." She then said to the Lady Ancient, "My biggest regret is being unable to do anything for you and Anubis. But I couldn't intervene in the Nether Realm while Talpa was there, he would have sensed me. And I didn't have the power I do now. I could not have kept myself from getting caught."

Kayura did not seem to care about the latter part, "She was right to try! Were you _completely_ mad?"

"Did you really think the Elders could afford to find someone sane to do the job I've had to do? Don't think so," the girl scoffed.

"You shielded us," it was the first time Ryo had spoken since his 'reality check.' "You prevented us from becoming infected by the evil."

The Secondary Guardian snorted, Universe's emotional wall completely up now, "Ya but it's not like I expect you morons to understand that concept." She walked over to the sliding glass door, "Another thing, the next time you decide to screw with me Rekka, keep this in mind…"

She glared at him from over her shoulder, "You're not dealing with some measly trained soldier, your stuck with an assassin. I've got more kills under my belt, than the lifetimes you've been alive for!"

This harshly stated she abandoned the house, slamming the sliding glass door behind her, before disappearing from view.

* * *

Sage turned his violet eyes to his leader the moment the door was shut behind her, they were narrowed and the look on his face showed his displeasure, "What the _hell_ is the matter with you?"

"I don't know, all I know is the fact that she was involved even when she said she couldn't be, irritated me somehow," the Ronin of Wildfire rubbed at his forehead.

Kento and Rowen had eventually released him, though they were both still a little concerned casting furtive glances at him every now and then.

Cye let out a sigh through his nose, "Even at that Ryo, what you did there was no excuse for it. You could have strangled her to death."

"What?" the Wildfire Ronin asked in bewilderment, as he stared at the Ronin of Trust.

Anubis looked at the Ronin Leader in alarm, "Do not tell me you have no recollection of what you just did?"

The Ronin of Wildfire was currently holding his head in his hands, a killer headache having set in. Kayura's eyes widened for a moment, before she took him by the arm, "Come on Ryo, lets get you something for that migraine."

The other men could only stare at one another in confusion, while Sekhmet gave a snort, "Anyone want to take bets on what it is this time?"

"Not me," the archer mumbled out rubbing at his eyes. "First I can't believe he got so angry like that, second, I don't understand how she pulled it off…Or why the hell she just stood there, took the berating, and then turned around and provoked him."

Dais mulled it over in his head, "I think she assumed it was Wildfire that was angry with her at first, and then she realized it wasn't him and acted so that she could intercede and push whatever it was off of him."

"Makes sense," Cale admitted with a nod, "The question being though, what was it?"

Kento sighed through his nose, "Somehow I don't think we're going to like the answer once we find it out."

"If we find it out," Cye muttered under his breath.

Sage finally spoke, "So, how many of you realized she was involved?" He wasn't all that surprised when he got murmurs from each of them. "What I thought."

"I wonder though," Anubis mused, "If she indirectly intervened during the fighting, if she also aided us at points other than that."

"Who knows?' Rowen shrugged, "I'm going to go check on Ryo." The other three gave nods in agreement to this and followed him. They were all unsettled by what had just transpired.

Dais shrugged his shoulders, "I'm going to go find a Senshi to harass." He melted out of view after saying this.

Cale and Anubis shrugged their shoulders and walked off, while Sekhmet turned his eyes to the window, noticing the rain that had started to fall…Without giving it much thought he exited the house.

* * *

A bitter wind swept past the forest sending a chill through her, and she tightly hugged herself in order to stay warm, but knew she wouldn't be able to.

The rain was coming down softly, mixing in with the tears streaming down Elayne's face. She felt numb inside, her mind still replaying the events that had transpired just moments before…She would love nothing more than to crawl into a hole and die right now.

A sigh caught her attention, but upon recognizing the person's gait she paid no mind to it, becoming further absorbed into her thoughts.

Sekhmet gave a slight shake of his head, saying in humor, "You get to be predictable after a while."

The Seasonal of Fall was not surprised when the girl made no acknowledgement of his presence; having been around her for as long as he had he knew how she responded to situations similar to this one. And only now was he beginning to understand why she reacted in this way.

He gave a sigh once again then murmured uncertainly, "Layne-chan?"

The girl now looked up, having heard the suffix knowing the man was about to broach a tense subject; "Yes, Nao?"

He blinked a few times, understanding that she was rather distraught, that was the only time she used his name; "I don't understand something. Why did you do it?"

She knew what he was referring to immediately, the fact that though she was forbidden to directly aide them; she had still managed to shield them from grave harm.

"I had too, it's my job remember? None of you are good to me dead, Nao. When and where I could prevent death I did; I couldn't save Koma, but it didn't stop me from trying," it was the Secondary Guardian's turn to let out a sigh, but she offered him a small smile. "Besides, the way I see it I've lived everyone's hell for them, doesn't make sense for you to suffer too."

The man chuckled, and relaxed a little seeing as how the girl was starting to pick up her normal mood once more, though something was lying just beneath the surface.

Sekhmet studied her for a moment or two, before saying quietly, "I've noticed, that as of late there is a burden on you, though perhaps I'm imagining it."

"No, you're right. There is something on my mind," she murmured in response, closing her eyes.

Silence reigned over them for a number of moments before she inquired in a soft tone, "Sekhmet, may I ask you a question, warrior to warrior?"

He was unsure where this would go, and it showed in his face, as he replied, "Of course."

She opened her eyes merely looking at him for a brief moment then diverted her gaze to the forest ahead, "You know how it is to lose your comrades in battle; you and the Seasonals did not have the sheltered lives the Elemental Ronin did. I also know that you can understand how it feels to lose those dear to you."

"You're right I do," Sekhmet let out a breath, clenching a fist in suppressed rage as he said, "I also know how it feels to watch helplessly as…"

"One of your own is mercilessly taken from you," the Secondary Guardian finished, voice wavering slightly, "Let me ask you this, if I may…Do you know what that feels like, on top of being betrayed by the very people dying? How helpless and worthless you feel when you arrive too late, half of them dead the rest dying-"

Her vision was blurred from the tears clouding it, and she continued on barely above a whisper, "And only being able to try and soothe a few before they pass on?"

"Layne?" He queried in slight alarm, the girl had fallen to her knees and was no longer holding back her pain.

"Damn it!" Elayne swore to herself, as the images flashed through her head once more; she regained what little composure she had left and told the Fall Seasonal, "That's all I see anymore, all I hear. Your blood is on my hands, every last drop of it. I was chosen to protect you, and no matter how hard I tried, no matter how many times, I always ended up failing!"

"Elayne," Sekhmet rebuked her sharply, striding over and getting her back to her feet, "You had no control over what has occurred. It isn't your fault."

"You're wrong, it is," the girl shook her head, "It was _my_ responsibility, and I should have fought against you all harder. When the bi-annual council meeting occurred, the night before every one of you had agreed that you needed more time before fighting Akemliek, yet, that's not what was said the next day."

She pulled away from him, taking her sleeve and wiping at her eyes and nose, "Not even a week later the fight came, and instead of permitting me to be there and help…The Senshi took it upon themselves to keep me out of it. The second lifetime, near to the same thing happened, but the Council had me thrown in prison to keep me out of the fight. I was a fool."

Flame flashed briefly within her eyes, "I should've overridden you all then and there. Hell, I should have done it the first time, but I was afraid to for I was warned of what would happen if I interfered in that way."

The man next to her ran a hand through his green hair, understanding the unbridled emotion she was showing had been kept in for quite sometime; "How long have you been holding this all in?"

"Too long," she admitted, "I know I can never redeem myself, in anyone's eyes least of all my own. There is just one thing I can't get over, one thing I don't understand."

"What's that?" He studied her a moment or two, before he asked this.

"Why do I always get left behind?" She closed her eyes again, refusing to cry anymore. "I'm so tired of remaining here to pick up the pieces! I just don't know how much more of this I can permit myself to take…I'm nowhere near as strong as I used to be."

The Fall Seasonal sighed heavily, he was not quite good at handling these type of situations, and he lamented, "And all this because Wildfire had to-"

"No, I've been battling with these emotions since November," Elayne said, tone once more calm. "I've been avoiding them for millennia now, and it seems that because I allowed myself to be more 'human' this time…It's getting to me, all of it. What happened isn't Ryo's fault…But I will stay away from him."

"Okay, so what do you and Kayura know," Sekhmet drawled out with a pointed look, "And aren't going to share with the rest of us?"

"Oh good she did pick up on it," the Secondary Guardian murmured to herself, before saying, "It wasn't Ryo, Sekhmet. It was Inferno. He's still weak from all the fighting, thus his normal walls that keep it from influencing him are down. If he gets enraged it can use him to its purposes, and that's what it did. The white armor has never liked me, and does what it can to cause me grief. I'll steer clear of Ryo until he gets his normal walls back up, that way it won't be tempted. It could end up harming him a lot worse than it can possibly hurt me."

The Seasonal of Fall gave a nod to this, but then frowned, "The question is, why did Thanos provoke him like that?"

A comment in reply was never made, for at that moment something shot across both of their senses and those back at the mansion. It was a vast amount of negative energy, and due to her overused senses the Secondary Guardian could tell who else was there, even before a cry for help was made.

In an instant the Scout stood before him, and Sekhmet wasn't surprised when she vanished a few moments later.

He gave a shake of his head, in the current state she was in little shape for battle…The Fall Seasonal took off at a run, armor coming to him as soon as he mentally called for it.

So, he had his answer. Thanos had hoped to provoke Wildfire and thus distract them while he went after the Senshi. They had fallen prey to a trap.

The green-haired man scowled his concern was exactly how much damage that trap had caused to it's intended victim.

Sekhmet then paused for a moment in thought; judging from what had just transpired, it was safe to assume Thanos' plan had done more than enough harm…But the answer to the question of why go through so much trouble still eluded him.

* * *

_A/N: Sekhmet is awesome. Yes, that's my only comment for this chapter. XD_

_~LG_


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine:**

**Written: March 29, 2006**

**Rewritten: April 15, 2008**

"How could I have been _so_ stupid?" Universe berated herself, slipping out of a shadow and then dashing forward. She couldn't believe it; she had been trained _better_ than that. To allow herself to become distracted just like the enemy had wanted her? She was not stuck in the first lifetime for crying out loud!

She slammed to a halt as she reached the clearing, violet eyes widened at the scene that greeted her. The Senshi of Pluto and Saturn looked to be worse for the wear.

"Hotaru?" She queried kneeling down to the smaller Scout, as she was closest.

Saturn opened her eyes after a moment or two, "Nee-sama?"

"You okay? What happened?"

"Little bruised up, but fine," the younger Scout mumbled moving a little and getting to her feet. "We had sensed energy in this area, but we all split up to try and locate it."

Pluto had regained consciousness, gotten to her feet, and joined them, "Thanos jumped us."

"He went at the Ronin before, informed them I was around when I shouldn't have been," Universe scowled, "It was a diversionary tactic, and it worked."

"Oh no," Saturn sounded panicked as she looked around. "Mini-Moon and Diana were with us."

Pluto's eyes were narrowed, but Universe shook her head, "Leave the young ones to me. Thanos wanted to get me riled, he did it. This trap was for me, I need to find out why it was so important."

"All right," the Time Guardian murmured, rubbing at her forehead. "We'll head on back, and leave it to you."

"Nee-sama, be careful," Saturn urged her, "If they laid this for you, then it can't be good."

"Don't worry, what's the worse that can happen to me? I die? Doubtful," the Lady of the Universe took off without another word, having located the ice demon.

Saturn and Pluto exchanged worried looks, but knew that they had to leave this in her hands. When Universe was on the war path, she was on the war path…Granted, she wasn't there yet, but at this point they doubted it would take much for her to get there

* * *

Thanos let out a sigh through his nose, arms crossed in front of his chest. His gray-green flecked eyes were half closed, as he leaned against the tree and waited. So far, things had worked out quite well.

He had been able to get the Senshi to doubt Universe not that much before, and the affects of that were not about to wear off anytime soon. He considered the true success in pushing Wildfire enough to let the Inferno take the anger out on the Secondary Guardian.

That had worked out perfectly, the ice demon could have been pleased with such an accomplishment, but he was largely disinterested in such trivial things. All he cared about was completing the whole of the plan, not triumphing over the individual parts.

Luck had been with him when he went after the Senshi, he had taken advantage of the Moon Princess of the Future being with the unprepared Outer Senshi. If nothing else got Universe to come to him, _that_ would.

While he should have been worried, he wasn't. He had realized that the Scout was physically weak after intervening so much when the whole of her power was still being restricted.

Akemliek was certain she would continue to pay for those actions for the next few weeks. Further, she'd been without her real power for so long using it even minimally had led to near-instant fatigue.

Now that they had exploited her weakness…The fact that she relied on the others powers and unity in order to fight…Thanos was quite certain she did not stand a chance.

It would not take much to get her out of the picture for a while. In fact, with the way the warriors had reacted to what he had "told" them there was really no need to go any further, the damage had already been done…And there was no way the Ronin would see what was coming.

Sailor Mini Moon was seething in silent rage; too often she had been called a burden by the other Scouts and she understood why, so to find herself in this position? Oh she was not a happy camper; Diana was miffed as well angrily flicking her tail back and forth.

Thanos had appeared out of thin air, the two Outer Senshi and she had been following the negative source, but were ill-prepared. He had quickly taken the two out and then trapped Mini Moon in some sort of bizarre shield.

"Just you wait till the others get here!" the small Sailor snapped out, "Then we'll see how long you'll be sleeping for. Hopefully, it'll be _permanently_."

Thanos gave a half snort to this, opening his eyes, "I am counting on someone to come. More importantly, I'm expecting Universe to show up."

The small child became quiet as she listened to this, and then it suddenly came to her…Her eyes widening in shock, "You…You know!"

"She didn't make a point of stressing it before, but yes I am aware of her reliance on the others powers, as well as the fact she needs them to trust her," the ice demon commented in a bored tone.

A large beam of energy came hurtling at him, and nailed the demon square in the chest.

"Even if you do know," Universe growled out angrily, "That **_won't_** save you."

Thanos let out a grunt, thankful that his armor had protected him from the fatal effects of the shot. He quickly pulled himself to his feet and drew his scimitar.

"We'll just have to see about that, now won't we?" he inquired as he lunged forward.

The Scout jumped back, and twisted to the side to avoid the follow-up swing; she then rammed her fists into his gut causing him to reel back at a momentous speed. She quickly got ahead of him and then proceeded to kick him in the back.

Thanos scowled as he was quick to recover control of his body before she could do anything else to him. He was critically eyeing her, trying to see if she was in anyway hesitating.

She was; it was barely there, but it was more than enough for him to see it. Good, that meant he stood a chance here; time to go through with the plan.

Meanwhile, Mini Moon had settled into a meditative position hoping to use a technique or two she had learned in the future here in the past.

She concentrated on the sphere-like barrier surrounding her, trying to find a flaw within the design; basically she was looking for the weakest point.

The girl had learned quite a lot at home, but had not been able to put it to use yet; her mother had warned her to only use her new talents when she had to. She had also been told not to use them until the warriors were aware of whom Universe was.

Now why that had been a requirement, the child had no clue, she had been obedient but this could most certainly count as an 'emergency.'

_'I found it!' _ Mini Moon inwardly cheered, before opening her eyes and getting up turning to the spot. However, she paused to assess the battle and was taken aback by what she saw…Thanos had managed to land several blows to the Sailor of the Universe, and the warrior was struggling to continue to fight him.

The Scout of the Universe was in trouble, while her agility was at an almost normal level everything else was off. Her reaction time was half of what it should been. She was both physically and mentally exhausted, and she had no way to summon up enough power for her main attack.

To make matters worse, she wasn't the only one who knew that, Thanos did as well and the ice demon was pressing his advantage. She had managed to avoid him from striking her vital spots, but just barely…If she didn't come up with a plan soon, she was sunk.

"Come now Universe," He taunted with a malicious grin, "Is this the best you can do?"

She glared at him, eyes dangerously flashing, "You're lucky, because if I were at half-strength you'd be a mud puddle right now."

He let out a chuckle, he did so enjoy the banter that came about when dealing with her, she always had something smart to say; "Oh I'm sure of that."

He took a step or two towards her, and then paused for a moment to think something over.

"Remind me, why is it you defend such pathetic fools?" Thanos inquired grin widening.

Before she could toss back a nasty comment, Thanos was sent soaring through the air and crumpled against a tree…After smacking his head against the trunk.

"Because not all of us are pathetic," Mini Moon cheerfully declared, catching her tiara as it returned to her.

Universe let out a chuckle in mirth, "They finally got around to training you themselves, did they?"

The young Senshi smirked, "After a certain someone's pressing, yelling, pushing, and shoving, ya they did."

"Oh they do listen to me," She remarked to herself, "I might almost find myself impressed in another millennia; irony at it's best."

Mini Moon merely blinked, she hadn't realized the elder Scout was in _this _bad of a mood, "Ermm, should we get going before icicle-boy stirs?" She motioned to the stunned and dazed Thanos who had not yet moved.

"No, I'll take care of Icecube," Universe said with a slight sigh; one thing the warrior did not like was leaving loose ends.

"Forget it!" Sailor Mini Moon agitatedly snapped, "You don't have the strength for it; forcing yourself to gather enough energy to finish him off will probably kill you."

The Scout raised an eyebrow, sarcastically shooting off, "What makes you think I'm not intending for that to happen?"

The child shook her head no, "I don't believe that! Elayne isn't that type of person, she cares about others and she wouldn't go looking for death just because a few of her friends are being complete morons."

"Chibi-Usa," the Guardian began in a soft voice, only to be cut off.

"No, you listen to me!" the girl gritted out, "I won't watch you turn into the person you…," She stopped short, and then stated, "I won't let you become so submissive to the others that you forfeit your own identity, and I won't watch you walk out of the palace for the last time."

Of all the things for the child to say, that hit the Sailor of the Universe like a ton of bricks, her violet eyes widened in shock..

"They sent you back, because I died?" She murmured looking at the small girl for some form of verification; largely confused.

Mini-Moon looked prepared to answer, but shook her head, "I'll tell you later."

"Let's go then," Universe murmured eyeing the waking demon warily, "After thinking about it? I really don't want to have to deal with him today."

Mini Moon gave a small nod, "Okay."

The Scout of the Universe slowly walked forward before jumping back courtesy of a handful of hastily shot arrows.

_ 'Raikken,'_ she thought in disgust and distaste, _'I don't have the strength to deal with them, let alone Thanos, but both? Man, I have managed to get myself stuck in a nasty predicament.'_

She had to get the princess out of here and fast, the only way to do that was to teleport; however, she would be exposed for a number of minutes and in that amount of time Thanos could do plenty of damage. Though only now coming too, it wouldn't take long for him to shake out of his stupor.

Thanos could probably track her if she were to teleport anyway, and once severely wounded she would be an even easier target.

_'I have to risk it,' _Sailor Universe gritted her teeth together and grabbed the younger Scout by the arm, more or less dragging her to the nearest shadow.

Thanos grunted and quickly hauled himself up, growling low in his throat as the Sailor of the Universe tried to make a hasty exit.

_ 'You're not getting away that easily,' _he thought to himself with a smirk. Using the fact that she was now defenseless to his advantage, Thanos sent off a chilling-blast of dark energy, ice embedded within the swirling mass.

All the Guardian could do was shove Sailor Mini Moon in front of her, and take the full-force of the attack, before teleporting out of sight.

* * *

"Are you okay?" The young Scout asked worriedly, not quite sure as to what just happened.

There was a pained-expression on Universe's face. She had gritted her teeth together to bite back the scream that had almost escaped from her throat as the attack ripped through her. Right now she was trying to keep her breathing normal.

"I'll be fine," the Senshi responded instead, getting to her feet and looking around to see where exactly they had ended up.

As she turned around, Mini Moon let out a startled gasp, "Your…Your entire back…"

The Secondary Guardian frowned and checked before visibly wincing at what little she could see, "Oh boy, no wonder I actually felt that. He managed to rip me to shreds with that little stunt."

She gently took the child by the arm and tugged her forward, making it so that now the girl was in front of her, "There now you don't have to see that."

"You need to get back to the mansion and fast," the young Scout had paled, "You're bleeding horribly!"

"Hey calm down kiddo," Universe gently soothed, "I can prick my finger and then bleed enough to fill a donation for all the Red Cross Clinics in Japan. I've always been like that; my family were bleeders, what can I say?"

She finally realized exactly where they were and how far away they were from the mansion. Thanos had stopped going after them for a moment, his presence having suddenly vanished.

"We should be all right for now," Universe murmured, turning her attention to the Scout and her guardian. "Now mind bringing me up to speed?"

Mini Moon rubbed at her arm, "Neo had been pressuring Mom to send me back to this time for a while. Mom didn't take her up on it though…Neo had become so…Cold and bitter, and the Senshi barely trusted her."

The child paused, "She had been away for a bit, and when she came back one of the councilmen suggested her presence scared the people. She had already warned everyone that he was of a traitorous nature, but they didn't believe her."

"Neo left because she realized they wouldn't stand up for her, and things fell apart," Universe said in a calm tone. "And while she had been away the Ronin went missing."

Mini-Moon nodded, "Kayura and the Seasonals are stuck in the Nether Realm because they've been locked in. And, you're gone…The councilman had Neo followed by some newly trained cronies of Akemliek which she easily defeated, but he caught you off guard…And…"

Diana closed her eyes, mewing out, "He killed you, slit your throat."

"And then Mom sent us back here, just prior to the palace being attacked," Mini-Moon whispered out, eyes tightly shut.

"Chibi-Usa," Universe sighed kneeling down and placing her hands on the girl's shoulders, "It'll be all right. Neo didn't die, she came back here. That's the point she jumped back from. She couldn't change things there anymore so she allowed everyone to think she was dead, and came back here to meddle."

"I knew Neo came back, but I didn't think it was from that point," Mini-Moon was surprised. "So, she's still alive!"

"Mhm, and she didn't want you returning until the warriors defeat Thanos for a reason. She wanted to try and prevent whatever happened to the Ronin from occurring this time around," Universe grinned a little. "No worrying about it, okay?"

She then added, "I promise you, I'll continue to do everything I can to change your future. I won't let anything happen to the Ronin, or anyone else in your family."

"That means you're going to take better care of yourself, right?" She asked quietly, "Cause you're part of my family too."

Universe chuckled a little, saying with a slight smirk, "I'll try, but you know how Ryo-tachi _love_ to get into trouble."

Mini Moon grinned, as it had been somewhat of an inside joke between them in her time, "Do I **_ever_**."

The Secondary Guardian fell silent her violet eyes scanned around again, "Meh, my senses are being distorted. Can't find where anyone is."

"Universe?" Mini Moon asked with a frown.

"You and Diana should make your way back, Setsuna and Hotaru are waiting on you, and I'm sure the other Senshi are by now," she said quietly.

"Aren't you coming?"

Universe let out a sigh as she murmured, "Munch, I have no intention of going near the others right now. I'm the last person they want to deal with…" She suddenly scowled, "And plus Thanos is coming."

"But you can't," the small girl began to protest.

"Chibi-Usa!" The Scout cut over-top of her, in a stern voice, before kneeling down and placing her hands on the child's shoulders, "Please little one, I need you to trust me. Especially now that the others don't; I'll be fine."

The younger Scout relented, "All right, we'll go."

The Secondary Guardian nodded her thanks, quickly getting to her feet pausing from taking a defensive stance when she realized it was only White Blaze that had just come through the brush.

He hesitated a moment looking the Senshi of the Universe over with increasing worry, _'What happened?'_

"Thanos," She answered simply, snapping her head in the direction the demon was now approaching from. "White Blaze I need you to take these two back to the others."

_'I'm not leaving you like that,' _the tiger rumbled out, indicating her current condition with a slight inclination of his head, _'At least permit me to wait until Kokuen, gets here.'_

"No go now," Universe sternly commanded, "I won't be able to hold him off for a great length. Take them and leave!"

_'I won't abandon you in such a fashion,'_ White Blaze growled back, angrily swishing his tail for emphasis.

"Blaze," She paused and looked at him, "You're not abandoning me! I'm asking you to get the small ones to safety. Please just go my friend; this is something I have to do alone."

He let out a long sigh, _'As you wish then.' _He crouched down so that Mini Moon could mount, and then quickly got to his feet dodging as a blast of energy came his way.

Universe let out an aggravated hiss, as she leapt up and performed a kick catching Thanos high in the chest; she gritted out, "Move it, Byakuen!"

The tiger gave a nod and then bound out of the clearing at such a pace that the child on his back almost fell off.

* * *

White Blaze continued to go as fast as his burden would allow, leaving the small princess to hang on for dear life. Poor Diana had to dig her claws into Mini Moon's hair to stay put. The child didn't appreciate the thick-claws being in her skull, so the Sailor grabbed the kitten and then held the creature firmly in her one arm.

Now only having one limb to steadily hold Blaze's fur by, she sank lower to his neck, and tried to pitch her weight forward.

_'Clever girl,'_ the tiger commented, since Mini Moon had moved her weight off his hind-end he could now go faster, _'This certainly helps.'_

"I'll take that as 'thank-you,' I think," the child commented, she had never enjoyed riding the tiger at fast paces, so she was doing everything not to scream at this point.

White Blaze might've slammed on the brakes if he weren't so worried about the Guardian, _'How…?'_

Mini Moon cringed and let out a small 'eep' as the cat took a huge leap over a fallen log, so it took her a few minutes to respond to his inquiry.

"Your mental line is just as accessible as anyone else's, Black Blaze's too. The warriors in my future have their past memories; they taught me how to communicate with you and him."

_'Why haven't you made this fact known?' _He asked, confused as to why the child would wait so long to say anything.

"My family didn't want me using any abilities I had learned until everyone realized who Sailor Universe was," She responded quietly, "I had put up mental blocks when I first returned to this time to hide my new strengths, but I just took the barriers down while clocking Thanos over the head. I had to do it at least once."

_'I understand,'_ White Blaze rumbled, _'Let us hope we can find someone that is close by, Universe is in a lot of trouble.' _The tiger didn't bother to make the comment that apparently her charges recklessness had rubbed off on her.

"I know," Mini Moon murmured quietly, "Since her powers rely upon the strength and unity of the other warriors, she can't fight when there is arguing amongst them since her abilities become inaccessible. Add to the fact that they doubt her too, and she's a sitting duck!"

A small mew caught the young Scouts attention, and she frowned, "What is it Diana?"

"I saw Sage, he's in the clearing to the left of us!" the lilac kitten stated.

White Blaze immediately made a move for that direction, causing both child and cat to screech in protest and cling even tighter.

_'I am never riding express again,'_ Mini Moon grumpily thought to herself.


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten:**

**New as of: April 15, 2008**

* * *

The swordsman of Halo had left the house at the same time the others did. The negative energy had been sporadic in its location, seeming to come from anywhere and everywhere at once, but it had not deterred him.

Sage somehow knew where he needed to go. Even though she had closed herself off from the rest of them, he _knew_ where she was. He wasn't quite sure if it was his armor that was guiding him, but even if it was…He was thankful.

What had transpired before had not sat well with him at all. Thanos more or less coming right out and telling them something about Universe, Ryo going off the handle and having no recollection of doing it…So for this to happen, he had already come to the conclusion that they had been set up; Universe more so than the rest of them.

Fifteen minutes into his run, he had realized that he had lost the others…But, it was just as well. Sage wasn't sure what _he_ was going to say to her, or if she would even let him speak. Elayne he knew all too well…He just wasn't quite sure how much of her personality as Universe would influence her. She had said that the personalities would meld, but he was certain there were certain things about the one that had outdone the other.

So, the Ronin of Halo didn't know if she would let herself be consoled, or brush him off. Of course those thoughts were lost when Mini-Moon found him, explained what had happened. He thanked her for the information, told Blaze to get the girl back to the other Senshi and took off; once again knowing exactly where he needed to be.

Now the blond swordsman drew to a halt, violet eyes darting about the area with uncertainty…Landing on Black Blaze. Sage tightened a subarmored fist in apprehension, and also to focus himself better.

The tiger let out a soft snarl at the display, but stepped aside revealing the unconscious form he had been guarding. Black Blaze had arrived only in time to beat Thanos off the Scout to keep him from doing fatal damage.

Black Blaze's attempts to get a response from her had failed, and so he had waited for someone to show up. Not surprised when it turned out to be the Ronin of Halo.

"Elayne!" Sage was next to her within an instant, his eyes slightly widened at the damage. Her back was torn and bleeding, there was a gash in her forehead that was bleeding far worse than the wounds on her back.

A loose swear escaped from his lips, as he placed a hand to her shoulder allowing his eyes to slip shut. The swordsman focused on using his ability to get the bleeding to stop, which he managed. Yet he refrained from aiding the wounds in closing over because he knew that they needed to be cleaned.

It didn't make sense, how could this have happened? Why hadn't the crystal-

At this point he pulled the girl up into a sitting position, his violet eyes now far wider than before…She didn't have the jewel on her. No wonder the wounds had been raw and bleeding still.

"Great, and I can't take her back, because she'd kill me," Sage grumbled out, as he tried to ponder _where _he could take her. Just as he tried to think it over the scenery faded away, and he found himself in the apartment Elayne was 'renting' from Cye.

The Ronin of Halo was startled at first, but then shot the black tiger a look. Black Blaze merely glared at him, the message quite clear: _Tend to her._

Sage let out a sigh and mentally ranted about cats and their possessiveness, before doing just that.

* * *

The swordsman had checked to make sure that Mini-Mon was all right, by mentally bothering his elemental partner. The Elemental Senshi had not spent much time around he and the other Ronin lately, but with their jobs the women were more often in direct contact with the Planetary Senshi.

Aurora had confirmed that the small one was fine, and was quick to inquire about Elayne…As well as where he happened to be. Sage had opened the mental lines to the others, responding that the girl would be fine.

He glazed over the condition he had found her in, simply because he knew she would not appreciate having that information divulged. Sage also neglected to tell them where they happened to be, if they couldn't sense him there was a reason for it.

The young man had cast a sideways glance at the black tiger, and posed the question as to whether he was masking their presence…Not all that surprised when he got a nod in response. After getting everyone up to date, Sage had shut his mental line off.

He gave one last glance at the sleeping form, before settling into a chair and drifting into a light sleep. At that point, he had needed it. The swordsman had stirred earlier than normal that morning, and after doing the healing he had done, he was exhausted. Sleep had been in order.

The Ronin of Halo slept about a good two hours before being prodded into wakefulness.

_'Oi, wake up Seiji,' _Black Blaze grunted as he harshly butted the man in the knee. He knew the man couldn't understand him, but it was irrelevant. _'Unless, you want hime to undo your healing job.'_

The swordsman came to consciousness almost immediately; his gaze going directly to the tiger, "What is it?"

Kouken-Oh sighed through his nose, before pointedly turning his head to where the girl still slumbered…Though, she was now struggling and almost violently so.

"An?" Sage asked in slight alarm as he moved to where she was, somehow avoiding tripping over the tiger whom was largely blocking his path. The Ronin of Halo frowned, her breathing was labored and her eyes moved rapidly behind the closed lids.

"Elayne!" His tone sharpened, and he placed a hand on her shoulder just before she jerked back to awareness. The swordsman managed to prevent her from bolting upward and potentially harming herself further.

Sage waited until he was certain she was fully coherent before soothing her, "Take it easy, you're fine."

"Nii-chan?" she sounded confused, and her eyes were slightly cloudy. "Wh-?"

Elayne stopped and lightly shook her head. Doing this, she managed to clear her thoughts enough to shake off the memory that had replayed itself whilst she was sleeping. When she spoke again, her tone was calm and even, "What are you doing here? Wait, how'd we even get here?"

"We all felt the energy and reacted…I just seemed to have a better sense of direction, because I ended up relatively close to where you were," the swordsman answered. "Rini found me and told me what happened, so I went on ahead. Black Blaze brought us here, and seems to be keeping my presence masked so the others can't find where you are."

"That's because you're my good protector," the girl cooed at the cat, as he had come over and put his head in her lap. She now wrapped her arms around his head and hugged him.

Sage chuckled inwardly at the display, but continued with his explanation…Knowing her questions before she asked them, "I did what I could to heal you, but you shouldn't move abruptly because I don't know how well I did. And, you're going to be sore."

"Thanks, Nii," Elayne murmured out in a quiet tone, having let go of the tiger.

The Ronin of Halo seemed to understand her dour mood, "We've been over this before, imouto. You did what you had to do, and all you could to help us. It doesn't matter that you couldn't intervene directly. You did enough indirect intervening and more than we will ever know about, that I am certain."

The girl shook her head in belated amusement, "You're still way too protective of me, but I'm thankful for it." She smiled at him, "It's just as well you knew about it."

"Ah," Sage nodded, and then frowned, "Though I have to wonder about the whole thing."

"Heh," she sat up more now, leaned her back against the wall. "Thanos informed me, just before knocking me out, that it was nothing personal but I was intruding too much."

"Meaning they had to have done something further than just this, perhaps messed around and let us recall the inconsistencies," the Ronin of Halo was back on his feet now, a second or two away from pacing. But when he saw her vigorously shake her head no to that, he scowled. "The armors, they found someway to slight you by doing that instead."

"Doesn't matter," Elayne murmured. "In doing so, they hurt themselves. Especially with Ryo's reaction."

"He didn't mean it," the swordsman told her in a soft voice. "I felt something was wrong, and he didn't even recall trying to harm you in such a way."

"I know," the girl answered grimly. "Thanos got him angry, and Ryo wasn't strong enough to keep the emotion at bay."

Silence settled over them for a few minutes, before Halo's bearer broke it.

"Why did you leave the crystal behind?"

Elayne threw him a wry grin, "I can already feel emotion without it, and by wearing it I feel them all the more as it channels the negative emotions. With it on me, I wouldn't have been able to think clearly."

She closed her eyes, thinking to add, "Of course, if I had realized I was being set-up, I would've called it back to me sooner."

All of a sudden Elayne held out her palm, and the black crystalline jewel appeared landing with a soft chime. She moved to place it around her neck, but grimaced as her arms were overtly sore.

Sage gave a slight shake of his head at her, and easily took the jewel amidst her protest. He then clasped it around her neck, "There." He paused a moment, looked her over, "Are you going to be all right?"

"Mhm," she gave a nod. Then smirked and added, "Always am."

The swordsman of Halo gave another shake of his blond head, this time with a roll of his eyes to accompany it.

"Keep it up Nii, you're head is going to pop off due to your unscrewing it," Elayne remarked in amusement.

"Short trip when you're driving imouto," he teased right back, before abruptly snapping his attention to the window. Yet, even as he did this the energy was gone.

"Again?" She echoed his thoughts aloud, mirrored the frown on his face.

"I'm starting to think _that_," he referenced the energy which had been coming and going in bursts and that none of them could identify. "Might have something to do with what Thanos pulled."

Sage's tone showed his disgust, "He said you'd intruded too much, but what if they were worried you'd figure out what's going on? They would want you out of the way completely, or in a position where your powers would be hindered."

"Well, I'm hindered all right," she grumbled out in annoyance. "While everyone's annoyance and doubt will fade rather quickly, especially since the linkers realize how badly they just bombed their attempts to 'help' their wielders, my powers are going to be in shambles. I barely had them back in working order, now? Forget it."

"That's what has me worried," the Halo Ronin admitted.

Elayne gave a nod, it bothered her as well, "We'll have to wait and see what happens."

"Mhm," he agreed. "Try and get some more sleep. And, I think it would be best if you just stuck around the mansion here on out instead of your brief stays."

"Eh? What for?" the Secondary Guardian arched an eyebrow at him.

"For one thing, to prevent the armors from turning us against you or doing anything further," Sage said in a calm tone. "They don't seem to press while you're around, but they do it when you're absent."

"And, I have a feeling if Akemliek is up to something, you're going to be needed," He added after a moment's pause. "You're the only one of us that knows how to accurately predict him. And with Ryo being like he is…"

"I need to stay away from him," Elayne mumbled out, ignoring Sage's look of surprise. "I can't take the risk that my presence will provoke Inferno. That armor hates me, and that will never change. I can't take the risk that it's going to hurt him in order to get at me."

Halo's bearer nodded in understanding, "I see your point. But I know you can avoid him well enough. After all, you've been in our shadows for most of your life, haven't you?"

"Smart-ass," she told him rolling her eyes. "But you do have a point. I suppose if I could pull off so many other things, I should be able to do something as simple as that."

"One can hope," Sage teased her, before allowing her to get some more rest and taking the chance to do so himself.

They were on the alert now, but neither realized just how much longer it would be before the real problem came to light. Nor, what all it would entail just to solve it…Or the fact that in order to reach a conclusion, the truth of the past would have to come out.

* * *

_A/N: I apologize for the lack of updates my friends. Oct-Nov is my busiest time due to National Novel Writing Month, hence you not receiving any updates since Sept. So to make up for it, here are two to keep you entertained. Alas work on Book 5 of TGOL is still stalled out, but I might have new motivation to get to work on that. And if I don't, I may look in to putting out a request for 'previewers' I have plenty of beta-readers I'm just talking about people to read the books that aren't up here yet. Just to get feedback on the actual story.  
_

_Well we'll see._

_-LG  
_


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven:**

**Written: August 2006**

**Revised: April 18, 2008**

**

* * *

**

It was quiet right now, save for the occasional stirring of the trees, as a breeze murmured through them. At this time of morning, the air itself was light and cool making it perfect to let loose.

The Ronin of Strata performed a few more leg stretches planning to make good use of the fine weather. While a chronic late sleeper as everyone well knew, he did get up early from time to time. Rowen would awaken at a time he knew he wouldn't be missed at, slip out of the house, and go for a run.

Not only did it allow the archer the time to stretch his legs thoroughly, but runs allowed him time to think. Every now and then he needed such time. With the way things had been going lately, and his last run having taken place over a week-and-a-half ago, he certainly needed the "time out" today.

Of course, his habit of returning from the jogs by the time everyone else was awake, almost defeated the purpose of getting up early to avoid their knowing where he was going. He didn't really care though, while the others took great enjoyment in waking him from a sound sleep, they understood late sleeping was a personal quirk and he did not _always_ do it. Plus, most of them knew he was a perpetual insomniac anyway.

"I still don't want to wrap my head around one thing in particular," the archer mused to himself, as he straightened up, "A prince from a province that no longer exists." He let out a snigger, "Sounds like a really _corny_ novel to me."

With one quick glance around him, he then bolted forward making sure to keep on the forest trail.

Rowen was most worried about when this period of silence would end; it seemed odd that the enemy had not tried to strike at them with the rate they had once done. True, they had found out about how much of the tunnels collapsed…But, it still did not sit well with him for things to be so quiet.

He was certain Thanos and Akemliek had come up with something else that would cause them much grief later. The ice demon had been lurking about, but Rowen got the main feeling he was just bored. After all, aside from the stunt he had pulled nearly a week ago, Thanos had not done anything to either group.

The Senshi had been in contact with the Ronin lately, but Strata's bearer put that off on the fact Sage had conned Elayne into staying at the mansion on a more permanent basis. The Scouts had been coming in to see her, especially once the realization dawned on them that they had been used against her.

Of course, Rowen doubted the girl received them the way they hoped…If anything they looked twice as guilty after talking with her than they did before bothering. She was avoiding the archer and the other Elemental Ronin almost completely, and since the Elemental Senshi had been caught up in their jobs she had no contact with them at all.

Yet, Elayne had been just as friendly, if not more, towards the Seasonals, and while that shouldn't irk him, it did. He had known her for near to all his life, and she was getting along with his former enemies better than she was with him.

Granted they hadn't been evil in a while, or nowhere near as bad as they had been made out to be, but still and all! Common logic was screaming at him, that it was completely absurd.

But, then the rest of his mind had to point out the fact of how badly the Ronin had hurt her. It might have been the armors doing, in bringing the fact Universe was around during the war to the forefront of their minds, but they had still permitted Thanos to convince them that she was at fault.

Well, Thanos words had not bothered Sage, or Kento…Neither one had bought into it. But, it seemed to Strata's bearer that she was keeping her distance from them as well.

The blue-haired archer had to slow his pace, realizing he had been going far too fast.

Rowen was certain that it had been intentional. She had to have known what was coming, that sooner or later Universe's involvement would become known. So, perhaps Anubis was right and her reasoning for keeping away back then was because she knew they were going to find out…And wouldn't take it well.

But overall, the Ronin of Strata was starting to think she was glad to have a good reason to distance herself from them.

_ 'I should to talk to her; this isn't safe or healthy for any of us,'_ he thought to himself, and then all of a sudden he felt something and quickly his battle instincts turned on.

He flipped over the two objects in front of him, and whirled around upon landing, quickly going into a defensive stance.

"Dynasty soldiers?" The archer asked in surprise, then narrowed his eyes at them.

The two soldiers exchanged looks, both were of different ranks that much he knew, with one another and then both looked back at the young man in front of them.

The one with the red chest-plated armor spoke first, "You must be the Ronin of Strata, correct?"

"Ya, what's it to you?" He growled out, ready for any of their sudden movements.

"Wonderful!" The lesser one cried, "I am called Niito. Please, can you tell us where we can find Lady Kayura?"

"Um yeah, she's back at the mansion," Rowen answered slowly, not quite sure what was going on here.

"I am Outa," The higher ranked one spoke sending a glare towards his companion, "Could you, perhaps, direct us? We have come to bring the report she asked for."

"Uhh sure," the Ronin of Strata blinked a few times, before starting off at a slow walk, "It's this way."

"You have our thanks Strata."

_ 'Heh, I just realized something, had I attacked them, Kayura would've killed me!' _Rowen shuddered at that thought; she was already tempted to rip his throat out…One more thing would've undoubtedly sent her over the edge.

* * *

Elayne sat on the porch railing watching the Seasonal of Spring and Ronin of Wildfire exchange blows during their sparring match. Her eyes flickered between both opponents, watching every move they made and the way they followed it through.

Of course, nothing was more amusing to her than hearing Kayura scream out encouragement to the Wildfire Ronin while calling Anubis derogatory names from the balcony above.

Black Blaze had to agree with the girl on that before when she brought it up, it was entertaining him a great deal.

The great black tiger gave an idly flick of his tail, _'Wonder what he did to earn her wrath this time?'_

"Who knows, the last time she was picking on one of them, it was Sekhmet. It was about the dumbest thing too, and it was something that didn't even pertain to her."

The tiger looked up with one of his smirks, _'It was 'that time of month,' wasn't it?'_

Elayne let out a chuckle, "Probably."

Her eyes swiftly turned back to the battle and away from her companion, she did a quick check and then called out, "Nubis, I think you're starting to over do it."

Ryo scowled menacingly at her, and then quickly ducked under the Spring Seasonal's coming punch.

The red-head was frowning as though he were thinking it over, "Are you certain?"

"Yes," the girl told him after a moment's pause, "Your energy levels are spiking and then dropping."

"How do you see all that?" The Ronin of Wildfire found himself asking, after he and Anubis had exchanged bows signaling the end of their match for now.

"Years of patience, and practice," she sourly replied, immediately turning her attention to Anubis to avoid having to look at Ryo.

The Spring Seasonal but back a chuckle, and placed his hand on top of her head, "Thank you for alerting me."

"Your welcome," she shoved his hand away, and gave him an unpleasant look, "I'm not a little kid, Nubis."

"I know, you mention this often," he retorted, quickly disappearing into the house.

The girl growled low in her throat, and Ryo shook his head in amusement fully prepared to go into the mansion as well.

As he made move to walk away, she grabbed his hand and gave a slight tug.

He arched a dark eyebrow at her, slightly puzzled by this. Ever since what had recently occurred, she had been avoiding him as though he were diseased. If she had to deal with him, her words were always calm and to the point. The normal kindness that was there was muted, if not completely gone.

Wildfire's bearer knew that he was mostly at fault for causing the treatment he was getting. He had slammed her against a wall, and, he still paled at the thought, the others had informed him he nearly strangled her to death.

So, her action now, startled him slightly.

"You have to take it easy," she murmured her eyes filled with worry. "You haven't recovered enough yet; your energy levels were rising and falling three times as fast as Anubis' were."

"Don't worry," Ryo told her in a reassuring voice. "I'll stop working as hard, okay?"

She gave a mute nod, and let her hand fall away, eyes quickly picking up movement.

He gave a sigh, not seeming too notice, "Layne, look…I-"

Ryo could clearly see the frown on her face, and turned around, eyes widening in surprise at the scene that met him.

* * *

The Strata Ronin broke through the trees, leaving the cover of the forest behind him, as well as his hitchhikers. The two soldiers had begun to argue in earnest with each other and it had driven him near insane, so he had picked up the pace.

Now he stopped and looked behind him, demanding in an annoyed tone, "Are you two coming?"

He heard a slight laugh escape from one of the porch's occupants, and turned around to glare, only to find Elayne clamping a hand over her mouth trying hard to quiet herself.

Rowen gave a roll of his midnight-blue eyes at her, but grinned a little; he was glad she actually found something funny.

Elayne calmed herself down before yelling loudly, "Hey Kay! Your company is here."

The Lady Ancient was off the balcony and onto the ground below within a few moments, the four Seasonals not far behind her. For the soldiers to be reporting so soon, did not bode well with any of them.

The two soldiers quickly bowed before the five as a sign of respect.

"Thank you Rowen," Kayura said to the archer in acknowledgement, before turning full attention to her troops, "Well, what news do you bring?"

"Restlessness, and plenty of it I'm afraid Lady Kayura," Outa grumbled in annoyance. "Those outside the Dynasty's borders are edgy and quite panicky. Rumor has quickly spread that the _Nysantic_ is once more free, and the great and powerful talismanic shield has finally failed."

Rowen had quickly jogged over to his friends, seeing that they were all out on the porch; Elayne's loud announcement to Kayura had caught their attention. The Elemental Senshi actually happened to be over that day, but were probably in the basement hammering out lyrics and chords.

The Hardrock Ronin frowned, and shifted his weight from one foot to the other, "What the heck's a ny-whatever?"

"Nigh-sin-tike," Elayne corrected easily, "It's what Akemliek's name comes to in demon tongue."

"Oh," Cye murmured, then thought about it. "How do you know that?"

She rolled her eyes, "Universal Representative, ought to say it all."

"Quiet down kids," the Halo Ronin scowled, "I'd like to hear this conversation."

"I'm afraid that the shield has failed, but how did you know of it and Akemliek?" Kayura wanted to get straight to the point with this, not too sure whether to be surprised with their knowledge or not.

"Legend foretells that after the evils of the generation fall away, the _Nysantic_ will once more rise and try to crush the worlds. All of us know of the _Nysantic_, very few do not; Talpa just refused to acknowledge that it even existed, but not everyone was that stupid," Niito calmly stated, turning it back over to Outa.

"This is bad indeed, if the great shield is gone we can expect the _Nysantic's_ strike and soon," the Dynasty soldier muttered to himself, then looked up, "That is all that is of true concern going on right now, though…"

"Go on," Kayura urged, she didn't like to be kept in the dark.

"We feel there's enough evidence to prove a cusalta is somewhere within the Dynasty," Niito blurted out, knowing Outa would not willingly continue; "The others disagree but there is more than enough proof for me that there is one."

Here the wise Ancient had to frown, even with the several important words the Seasonals had taught her over the years so she could more easily converse with the youja, they had neglected to tell her the meaning of that one. Whatever it was, she paused to take a look at the four men beside her, it couldn't be good they looked worried and extremely agitated.

"Are you certain?" Sekhmet demanded brusquely, words almost coming out in a hiss.

"Yes," Outa responded, "We are quite certain, my lord."

"Hold on a minute," Elayne spoke up from behind, laying a hand on the agitated Fall Seasonal's shoulder. "Don't get too worked up yet. Find out exactly what we're dealing with first, and then you can go chop down a forest."

Cale gave the girl a look, not having heard her come up behind them, "He isn't over-reacting, none of us are. And we're dealing with a _cusalta_!"

"You guys are such drama queens," she gave a roll of her violet eyes, and turned her gaze right to the soldiers. "Have you been able to determine if it's a _miet_ or a _renalta_?"

Everyone looked at her slightly surprised not prepared to hear such terms come out of a girl's mouth. Not one that looked mortal and harmless anyway.

"N-no," Niito replied hesitantly, adding, "We believe it may be a _renalta_, but we haven't found enough proof, yet."

"Lady Kayura, it may be best if you and the lords return today, to help ease some of the concerns and keep the troops in line. While there you can also look for and see if you can find the cusalta, we've had no luck."

"Yes, I think we shall," Anubis quickly brought in, "Give us time to talk with our comrades and we will be back to you quickly."

The two soldiers once more deeply bowed, watching as those outside slipped into the house.

* * *

"What on earth were you all talking about?" Kayura demanded in annoyance, not happy that she seemed to be the only one with Nether Realm ties that didn't know what was going on.

They had called a meeting, quickly filling the Elemental Scouts in, before getting to the terminology of everything.

"A _cusalta_ is a 'rift,' or a rip in a dimensions walls," Dais told her calmly. "A _miet _is a time rip, while a _renalta_ is a rip that affects this dimension and that of another dimension; whether it be an alternate or parallel world."

"So in simple human terms, this is very bad?" Kristin asked; she had never much appreciated all the drama that went into discussions.

"Very," Sekhmet responded, "If Akemliek were to learn of it, and find it, he could cause irreversible damage to other worlds."

"I don't believe this," Rowen muttered trying to fight back the migraine he knew was coming.

"Believe it," Cale told the Strata Ronin, "It sounds absurd, I know, but they occur quite often in the Nether Realm. Talpa always had them found and sealed as quickly as possible, that was perhaps the only thing he was fearful of. I say this needs to be looked into."

"But why?" Vanessa asked a scowl on her face, "Why are these rips more often there, than here? That doesn't make sense."

"Oh it makes perfect sense," Elayne sighed out, eyes lingering on the window as they had been for the entire length of this conversation. "The problem is that the Dynasty is only one part of the Youjakai. While there are other places within the realm, these are well hidden and sealed by protective spells and you need the proper keycode to get through most of them."

She took pause, turned her attention to the warriors, "However, what happens is that boundary spells and seals expand, and when that happens they rub against one another creating a tear in the 'fabric' of the dimension."

"You really are a walking textbook!" Aurora ridiculed her, having heard Serena blurt out that term for Elayne on more than one occasion.

The girl merely let out a chuckle, she was more concerned about this problem than anything else, "Kayura, I have to agree with Cale. This needs to be taken care of and now."

The Seasonal of Winter couldn't help himself, as he beamed a smile of pure satisfaction, while the Lady Ancient growled at him in response. She was more than fully prepared to smack the smug look off his face.

"Okay and we're leaving when?" Callista asked, not sure she liked the sound of this at all. "And, are we informing the other Senshi?"

A loud round of 'no's went up from each male Ronin, while Kayura watched this reaction with a blank look on her face.

"That is," Anubis cleared his throat, "Yes to informing the remaining Senshi, but no to the coming along part. The Dynasty and Nether Realm are not safe."

"I thought the only real threat was destroyed?" Vanessa narrowed her eyes, it almost came across as though he thought that they were weak.

"That's not what he mean," Sage said, and clarified, "It isn't safe because of the despairing thoughts that linger there."

"Speak in plain Japanese, Halo," the red-head snapped quickly on her feet, it was one of those times were she was more than tempted to strangle him.

"What they mean is you don't belong there," Elayne looked directly at the Elemental Senshi. "It isn't any place you want or need to be. The real physical threat may be not at all, but the mental threat is real and the damage that can be done severe. Somehow I don't think they want that to happen."

"Sit down Vanessa," the Sailor of Light told her friend quietly, the blonde then eyed the Ronins, "She's telling the truth, isn't she?"

The Ronins gave mute nods, while Kayura murmured, "Not even the powers you have can protect you from the mental dangers there; the armors themselves only offer minimal protection. It isn't safe; we can't ask you to come along for this one."

The Scouts gave nods of understanding, deciding not to comment on it any further.

The Seasonals were quickly out the door, but Kayura lingered eyeing the Ronin leader curiously.

The Ronin of Wildfire was already on his feet, as he told the other four Ronins quietly, "Guys, you don't have to come if you don't want too."

"Ryo's right," the Lady Ancient quickly brought in. "Those four, you know how they love to over-react, it might be nothing. I would feel horrible if you forced yourselves to come along for nothing."

"Thanks," the Ronin of Strata managed to get out after careful debate, standing slowly. "But I'm not taking any chances."

" 'Sides," The Ronin of Trust cheekily brought in, "You'd miss us too much Kayura."

All the young woman did was glower at Cye, and whirl on her heel swiftly storming out of the house.

Sage and Kento did their best to keep their laughter in check, both figured if the Water Ronin would be all right with going they would be as well. After all, as far as they were both concerned he had been there the longest and suffered the most.

The door slammed behind them, and Callista let out a sigh, "It's going to be quiet without them around."

"Yeah, but now we can go guy shopping and redecorate this place," Kirstin said with a wink.

Elayne once more rolled her eyes, already moving towards where the Ronin had gone.

"And just where do you think you are going?" Aurora demanded in aggravation.

"To keep Kayura company?" the girl offered, then said quite seriously, "Actually, someone has to make sure the bishounen come back in one piece. I nominated myself for the job, several millennia ago."


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve:**

**Written: August 2006**

**Edited: April 21, 2008**

**

* * *

**

"They took _that_ well," Anubis said with a chuckle, "She can speak quite harshly, can't she?"

"For your information," Elayne declared with some amusement from behind him, "I was speaking to them straight-forwardly like I always do, they don't happen to like it when things get "sugar coated."

"Don't do that!" Sekhmet let out a surprised yelped, very close to jumping out of his skin.

"You're worse than Rowie," the girl ridiculed him fondly, jabbing him in the ribs with her finger. She laughed lightly when he scowled and swatted at her hand to get her to stop pestering him.

Ryo scowled at her, immediately demanding, "What are you doing here?"

"My job," she spat back, "You don't like it? Go bitch to the elders, not like they even care."

The Ronin Leader backed up a step, not having expected such a vehement reaction from her, but maybe he should have.

"And do tell," Cale asked with a slight hint of a chuckle, as he put an arm around the girl to keep her from attacking Wildfire, "What might your job be?"

She looked up at him with a candid smirk, "The one that says I have to follow whomever is most likely to be in danger, and keep their ass out of that danger."

Kayura eyed the girl, but relaxed seeing that Cale was managing to keep her calm, "I sent Outa and Niito back, so that they get there before us. Now we just have to find a gate."

"The nearest being two miles from here!" Dais wailed in complaint.

"Stop whining," Kayura snapped in extreme agitation.

"Yes mother," he retorted giving a roll of his blue eye for emphasis. This earned him a heavy whack on the head from the Ancient's staff. The Lady Ancient gave a triumphant smirk and whisked the object away.

"What happened to protecting "whomever is in danger" ?" Rowen teased Elayne, giving her a slight nudge in the ribs.

She looked at him and quite seriously replied, "I said keep their ass out of danger, not protect them from it. Besides, Kayura doesn't even count. She's only dangerous when you've pissed her off."

"Thanks for telling us something we didn't know," Kento said with a wink.

"De nada," She quipped, then looked back to the Seasonals, "I think your statement about the closest being two miles away, is a bit off."

"Like to prove it?" the Winter Seasonal raised an eyebrow at her.

"Would love too. Don't mind, do you Kay?"

"No, not at all," the young woman replied in amusement; she was enjoying the fact that so many of her charges were annoyed by Elayne's presence.

The girl beamed her thank you, and set off into the forest at a brisk walk.

* * *

After being on the main trail for ten minutes, the Secondary Guardian made a hard right turn almost losing those following behind her. Soon the trail became narrower until the path was no more, and the way ahead was blocked by thick and dense forest brush.

"Who's got the orb, and is it set?" Elayne inquired, looking back over her shoulder.

"I do, and yes," Sekhmet answered as he handed it to her, "I assume you want it?"

"Thanks Sekky," She took a step forward, and held the orb directly in front of her.

All of a sudden the ground shook with a violent force, as the gate sprang up directly before them.

"Well, you were quite right," the Spring Seasonal remarked, adding, "And as the mortals say, 'hold onto your lunch.'"

The doors swung open, and in a flash they were gone, the gate closing and disappearing after being used.

* * *

"Oh man," the Wildfire Ronin moaned, slowly pulling himself into a sitting position, "That's the last time Sekhmet gets to set the gate orb."

"Somehow I have a feeling we were meant to be closer to the Dynasty than this," the Halo Ronin remarked studying the water he was sitting in, before getting to his feet. Thankfully they had all been wearing sub-armor, otherwise they would've been drenched to the core.

"Ideally," Dais muttered, "We should have been inside the Dynasty, not in the Nether Realm."

Anubis said nothing, only exchanged a look with Kayura telling her they were in a lot of trouble.

"This is all really fascinating," Rowen sarcastically stated, "Now can someone get Kento _OFF OF ME_?"

"Look blue-hair," the Hardrock Ronin growled, "I'd move if I could!"

"Hey," Ryo made his way over to his tangled up friends, "Where's Cye?"

A strangled-sounding British voice wheezed out, "Being suffocated to _death_."

The Ronin leader quickly yanked Kento up, and Rowen scrambled off of the poor Water Ronin. It took several deep and gasping breaths before Cye managed the strength to sit up.

The Seasonals were howling with laughter at their rivals, tears very close to streaming down their faces at seeing such a site.

Kayura smirked, "A three Ronin pile up, and Elayne missed it!"

This brought the five Ronin Elementals facial color down by several degrees, and each young man nervously looked around for a glimpse of the girl.

"Three? When all five are making a pyramid then call me. I definitely want to see that," she quipped, coming out of the slight fog, Black Blaze at her side.

"When'd he get here?" Sekhmet asked mildly surprised.

"Before we did, seems he heard what was going on."

"Sight-seeing were you?" Dais gently chided her.

Elayne gave an indignant snort at hearing this, she didn't appreciate such comments…Well not anymore anyway, "Don't be stupid. Checking the energy levels, which are off the charts and by the sound of things we also undershot our destination a lot."

"The gate could've been faulty!" Sekhmet wailed in defense of himself as the five Seasonals began walking in the direction of their home. Elayne kept right beside Kayura, knowing that none of the Ronins would go through Kayura to bother her.

"You know full well a faulty gate will never operate. Badamon inserted that safety feature ages ago," the Summer Seasonal pointed out to his friend.

"Yes but a orb will still operate even if the conditions are incorrect," Anubis said in one of his stern tones, "A rip in an energy barrier causes an overflow of energy in the gate system, and this will send the user either further over or under his original destination."

"So we're definitely dealing with a _cusalta _then?" Cye inquired trying to remind the Seasonals they weren't alone.

"Yes," Winter's bearer nodded, "Definitely."

* * *

They had to have been walking for an hour now, the Seasonals in the front and the Ronins in the back listening to the conversations going on ahead of them.

There tended to be insults exchanged between the four men, and then Elayne would jump in to defend the person being insulted by pointing out what was wrong with the accuser.

This went on for a few minutes, and then the topic would drift back to what they had done in the mortal world on the "weekends." Nothing seemed to fascinate these five people more than how much the mortal realm had changed from years past to what it was now.

Certain things amused them, while others were only there to serve to be as confusing as possible; all in all they had made a rather smooth transition to becoming apart of the world. However, they still preferred the Nether Realm to any place else, no matter how they tried to look at it, this would always be home to them.

The Wildfire Ronin scowled, already irritated that Elayne was here but now he was even more so. There was just no way possible she could get along that well with them, when even he had trouble!

He was the Ronin Leader for pities sake; he ought to be able to get along well with all of his teammates. It just depended on the day though, meaning whether or not one of the Elemental Ronins had tried to get on a Seasonal's, and former enemy, case depended on how receptive the five were towards the Wildfire Ronin.

They tended to avoid him on those days, knowing what a delicate place it put him into: to be stuck in the middle of such a mess that often blew way out of proportion.

The Seasonals knew Ryo would be loyal to his friends first and thus tried not to put him into a compromising situation.

Rowen uncrossed his arms, "Sometimes, I could wring her neck."

"Kayura, or Elayne?" the Hardrock Ronin asked with a roll of his eyes. Yeah, he had been suspecting this one to come up eventually.

The archer thought about this for a few minutes, before responding with "Both most days, but Elayne for today."

"Now why?" Sage inquired with a half-sigh, already knowing the answer.

"She told the Scouts they didn't belong here, and she came along!"

Cye let out a long breath, dully pointing out, "You didn't have a problem with it, two minutes ago."

"Ya well," the Strata Ronin shot back, "I didn't have enough time to think about it. But the more I dwell on it, the more I don't like it."

"So stop dwelling on it!" Elayne shouted over her shoulder, "Nobody asked any of you what you like and don't like about me being here. Don't like it? Tough, be big boys and deal with it."

"Elayne," the Halo Ronin began, only to be cut off.

"Look blondie," She growled out in warning, "If you idiots are going to talk about me behind my back, do it in the figurative sense and not the literal! Morons."

Sekhmet stepped up beside her and put his arm around her, "Now little sister, what have I told you about that temper of yours?"

"To mind it," Elayne said with a grin, "I just didn't feel like paying attention to it today."

The Fall Seasonal shook his head in mirth, "Apparently so."

Kayura came to abrupt halt, ending further discussion, "Well at least we found it."

Before them stood a large gate, but something felt off about it and she frowned.

"Something isn't right with this picture," the Lady Ancient murmured, stepping closer as the gate continued to remain idle.

"Someone or something has locked us out," Anubis muttered, eyes narrowing considerably.

* * *

After an hour and no luck in opening the gate, the ten warriors sat down in a circle together trying to figure out what to do.

Black Blaze and Elayne meanwhile had been watching the proceedings with mild interest and intense disappointment.

_ 'Don't these fools know how to overload a lock?'_ the black tiger demanded in aggravation.

"Guess not, Talpa probably had no reason to keep them locked during his reign," the girl answered. "If memory serves me right, he only kept them locked for _special occasions_ anyway."

_ 'Oh yes, I remember that,'_ the cat murmured, _'This is boring! Can't you just drop them a hint?'_

She snorted loudly, catching the others attention, "I am not in the mood to play twenty questions, Kokuen. Besides they all _suck_ at that game, and you know it."

He laughed heartily, _'Very good point, very good point indeed.'_

Ryo glared at her, "Are you talking about us?"

"I don't see anybody else around, do you?" She inquired, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Stop," Kento said, tugging his leader down, and then sent to his friend privately, _'I think you've beat on her enough, don't you?'_

The Wildfire Ronin hung his head, knowing that Hardrock was quite right with the statement.

"All right," the Seasonal of Winter let out a long despairing sigh, "You win, how do we get in?"

The girl shrugged at this, and said to the tiger, "Told you they were bad at this game, they ask the wrong questions."

Kayura let out a snicker, and then looked to Elayne asking calmly, "How does Universe get in?"

"Oh well," the girl walked up, and scratched at the base of her neck, "Can you keep a secret?"

"Of course I can!" the young woman grinned, "Have I ever let you down?"

"Nope neva," Elayne chuckled out, then held out her hand, "Typically, this is how one without proper access gets in."

A beam formed in her palm, and she tossed it at the gate, what seemed like a ripple of electricity spread across the structure, and the doors swung open.

"Ah, short-circuiting the system very clever," Dais said in an approving tone.

The girl beamed happily, "When all else fails, that always works."

* * *

"At least we made it into the Dynasty," Sage thoughtfully remarked, two hours later and they were still rather far away from the palace.

"Oh joy," the Torrent Ronin grumbled, pausing to notice. "Is it just me or is it getting dark?"

"It's getting dark," Anubis answered, "We have a period of light and dark just like you do."

"Oh?" Kento frowned in confusion, not having remembered that happening before. Then again, the last time he was here…He was hanging in a dungeon.

"Mainly because of when Talpa tried to merge the worlds," Kayura explained, "It left some lingering affects here. For instance, time in years is now adjacent to the mortal realm."

Ryo let out a yawn, getting raised eyebrows from his friends and comrades.

Elayne rolled her eyes, "I think in his terms it means: can we set up camp now, instead of later?"

Everyone laughed, while the Wildfire Ronin stuck his tongue out at her in annoyance. She just shrugged her shoulders to compensate for 'whatever.'

* * *

"How long do you think it will take us to get there?" Ryo asked of the Summer Seasonal.

"For their sakes," Dais responded slowly, turning his eyes away from the four sleeping Elementals, "Not too long I hope. It was risky for them to come."

"There would've been no leaving them behind," Cale announced gravely. "Far too stubborn and care too much about the fate of the world to care for their own safety."

"Noble fools run rampant in the mortal realm," Elayne quietly quipped. "You five got stuck with the worst ones."

"Thanks a lot Layne," Wildfire's bearer rolled his eyes, "Who's side are you on?"

"Not yours," she replied sticking her tongue out at him.

"Cut it out you two," Kayura murmured in warning, "You'll wake them up."

"Will not," the girl responded, sounding rather smug. "Especially with the spell I used, they won't stir till tomorrow morning at first light."

Anubis gaped at her, "Either you slip people sedatives or use spells?"

"Hey just be glad I don't do anything more than that," She gave a wicked grin at this, "Cause I could. Honestly, did you really expect any of them to fall asleep willingly? Use your heads."

"I suspect with as old as you are," Sekhmet began slowly, "You know how to use the proper spells without overdoing it."

"All right, enough," Dais was a little annoyed now, the arguing always started to get on his nerves at this point. "Who gets first watch?"

Cale gave a sigh, "I will."

"I get second watch," Elayne quickly jumped in before anyone could open their mouth.

Anubis gave a slight yawn, "I'll take third, and that should be it for tonight."

They all nodded in agreement before dispersing to go and get some sleep.

Not to Cale's surprise, the girl remained at the fire with him; he doubted she would be getting any sleep tonight just by the look of worry and agitation in her face.

"I'm such an idiot," She murmured out. "I knew something was wrong, and I knew it wasn't because of Akemliek. I should've used my head, blast it."

"You shouldn't be so hard on yourself. It is not your job to protect the world from danger, it's ours we should've known something was wrong as well. We aren't perfect, no human is."

She raised a dark-eyebrow at him, "You're admitting that you're human now? What brought about this sudden change?"

He let out a chuckle, but sternly told her, "Mind yourself little one, your manners are slipping. Nothing in particular, I can't keep trying to pretend I am what I used to be, now can I?"

"Sorry, it happens when I'm stressed. No, I guess not."

Silence settled in on them after that, and that was how they spent the remainder of the Winter Seasonal's watch: warily scanning the surrounding area and monitoring those that slept.


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen:**

**Written: August 2006**

**Edited: April 21, 2008**

**

* * *

**

"Rise and shine folks," Elayne cheerfully announced the next morning.

A couple of moans and groans was her response, and she bristled, shouting in irritation, "Hey you guys, let's go!"

She crossed her arms in front of her chest, her eyes becoming half-lidded as she stared at them all. They had about two minutes before she started using dirty tactics to get them to stir.

Kayura reluctantly got up, and performed a few mild stretches. Kento and Sage were both awake and on their feet within an instant.

"We're up," Cye grumbled at her, slowly stretching out his sore arms. Ryo got up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, before unkindly prodding Rowen with his feet. The archer gave a grunt but got the picture and awoke, sitting up, and then getting to his feet.

Sekhmet bit down a yawn, and punched the white-haired man in the shoulder resulting in Dais popping open his eye and glowering at him. The Fall Seasonal merely smirked at this and stood up.

Even Cale was awake, not at all desiring in dealing with Elayne coming up with some way to rudely get him to rise. And the Spring Seasonal…Well…

Anubis scowled at the girl, "You didn't wake me up for my shift."

"Ya I kinda value my life," the girl sweetly stated, sending a wink to Kayura who did her best to hold her sniggers.

"All right let's actually try to act our ages," Sage sighed out, giving a roll of his eyes; even though he was slightly amused by the banter.

The girl gave a snort at his comment, "If I tried to act my true age, I'd be _**dead**_."

This earned a couple of laughs and snickers of amusement from each Ronin, while Kayura merely shook her head. It was going to be one of those days, wasn't it?

* * *

"Just imagine if we had actually walked to the one two miles away," Sekhmet brought in now, having listened to his friends complain about the walking.

"We'd all be toast," the Hardrock Ronin said in agreement.

Elayne let out under her breath, "Which wouldn't be a bad thing at this point."

The constant complaining was starting to give her a headache, and the fact there was something wrong with the energy was making her senses flare…Serving to only further annoy and irritate her.

Black Blaze let out a chuckle, and then came to a complete stop, ears twitching back and forth picking up sounds not too far away from them.

Cale scowled, having heard the noise as well, "Perfect! Just what we needed," He leapt up onto a rocky escarpment, and took a good look, before glancing back at those below. "Better get up here, lest you prefer to be trampled."

"It's those rotten horses again, isn't it?" Dais commented, pulling himself up.

Cye blinked uncertainly, "What do you mean; I thought you had a good hold on the demon horses?"

"Certain herds," Kayura brought in, quickly jumping up. "This one however bows to no one, and they aren't very fond of 'humans' either."

Elayne watched as they all headed to higher ground, and exchanged a bewildered glance with Black Blaze, '_They're really starting to scare me.'_

_ 'They're right about these,' _the tiger responded carefully, _'These are the most dangerous in the Dynasty. Always have been, always will be.'_

She snorted back a laugh, "Go ahead and join them, I'm not going anywhere."

_ 'If you stay, I stay,_' he announced with conviction, lying down beside her.

"Elayne, you're crazy! Get up here!" Rowen shouted down to her.

The girl waved him off then crossed her arms and leaned against one of the rock walls, signifying that she didn't plan to move anytime soon.

* * *

The scent had reached his nostrils; black eyes darted across the landscape before he sent out a neigh to the lead mare that they had company in the form of humans.

It was an easy scent to detect, one the Warlords had always carried even though they had been in this realm for so long.

Being of such a devious nature, Isamu, as he was called, couldn't help but literally leap at the chance to make Kayura's day worse than it normally was.

Kasumi, the matriarch mare, often agreed with him in that; she had little love for the humans as well. Then again, she typically had little love for anyone even those among her own herd.

The great stallion lived for nothing more than being a thorn in the Lady Ancient's side, and since he detected more people than usual…Well he had big plans to run them down, trample them if he could and Kasumi was leading the herd in to help.

This herd of horses tended to be the strongest and most unpredictable out of all the youja horses, one of the reasons Talpa had left them be probably. He had enjoyed watching their rebellious nature at work, since they always managed to cause damage to his enemy's and not the Dynasty itself.

Isamu gave a wicked snort as he came up the next rise, slowing down to a trot as he eyed the humans up on the rock escarpment.

A chuckle seeped through the horse as he tossed his flame-like mane, _'Something the matter? Not happy to see us, we're hurt!'_

Snorts and whinnies of laughter came up from the herd, as they slid in behind the lead stallion and mare, watching as the ten humans glowered at them. None were glaring at them as menacingly as the Seasonals though, and the Lady Ancient looked livid.

"Go away Isamu," Kayura hissed to the creature, clenching a fist around the staff which she had summoned. No, the power had never done any good against them…But it did make a certain noise which they happened to hate.

He gave a playful leap upward at her, _'Oh Kayura come now, what harm can we do?' _ He was once more grinning evilly up at them, eyes never leaving his target. Fully prepared to leap up onto the rocks, and scare the life out of them all.

"Whatever you can do, I can do _**worse**_," Elayne told him evenly, spooking several of the other horses away from where she was standing.

The stallion tossed his head, and whirled around, demanding, _'Where'd you come from?'_

"None of your business," She simply replied, then frowned asking with a sigh, "What have I told you?"

Isamu gave a snort, _'You could've said you were coming by Ambassador.'_

"You could actually learn to do what I ask of you," the girl retorted calmly, "Futoshi, doesn't have a problem with listening to me."

His attitude changed immediately with mention of the rivaling herd stallion's name, _'Is there something we may be able to help you with? You all seem rather far away from the palace.'_

"Well do you think you and Kasumi could be dear hearts and get us at least as far as the other herd's border? I am sure Futoshi can take us the rest of the way…"

_ 'Nonsense, we'll take you directly outside the palace boundary!' _ Isamu looked to his lead mare, _'Isn't that right Kasumi?'_

The mare gave an avid nod, not willing to let any other herd to have such glory as to escort the Ambassador, _'Yes, not a problem at all.'_

Elayne gave a bow of her head, "Thank you both, I knew I could count on you. Come on people they're willing to give us a lift."

* * *

'_You have to tell me how you do it,' _Kayura murmured still in slight shock, as she gripped the mane of the horse even tighter, _'They wouldn't give me the time of day!'_

_ 'All you have to do is bring up mention of another herd, and they will do your every whim. It applies to all of them, see while they may be demon horses they're no different than their mortal cousins. Horses are extremely prideful creatures, and most will do anything to get recognized by others.'_

_ 'I'll keep that in mind the next time I have to deal with them,' _the Lady Ancient remarked thoughtfully.

Elayne snickered, _'Also you can mention 'Ambassador' and they'll whip into shape and be your best friends forever. Creatures memories can't be modified for anything, believe me I've tried, it doesn't work. The creatures of this world and the mortal one are the only ones who know the full truth, so therefore they all know me and what my job is.'_

_ 'Ah,' _Cale entered into the conversation now,_ 'Must certainly come in handy.'_

_ 'Sometimes,' _the girl frowned, _'But not always. I'm only a fan amongst horses and tigers, wolves don't have an opinion. Or, rather, that's what they keep telling me. So, everything that isn't a domesticated animal would probably be willing to hand me over to the nearest evil on a silver platter.'_

_ 'Ouch,' _Cye couldn't help but wince, _'Can't win, can you?'_

_ 'I gave up trying to win ages ago.'_

_

* * *

_

The ride was long, and quite uneventful not to mention exceedingly bumpy and uncomfortable. The terrain was thick and covered in grass now, it varied from being metallic green to gold in some parts, Sakura trees seemed to have invaded much of the other open spaces. It was hard to tell that this place had been ruled by someone so evil, but certain feelings of unrest still lingered here and there, and the Ronins could sense it.

Rowen's eyes moved carefully over the scenery, sweeping back and forth taking in as much as he could, it was beautiful here, but something still felt off. Maybe he was overreacting, the last time he had been to this place was to rescue three of his brother-in-arms and he and Ryo had almost been killed several times.

But he couldn't help but feel that something was wrong, he now studied the mount he was riding. One of the younger demon horses, perhaps a two-year-old colt at the most, off-black body and grayish mane with amber-colored eyes.

Amber? The archer frowned, didn't these horse's eyes tend to be black or red? He wondered if mortal horses had somehow managed to cross over into this world, or had been taken for breeding stock. It was possible…

"Earth to Rowen, please come in!" Kento said in exasperation, he and the other three Ronin Elementals having been trying to get a hold of the blue-haired archer for the past ten minutes.

"Huh?" the Strata Ronin blinked a few times in confusion.

Ryo gave a roll of his blue eyes but had to smile anyway, "We were trying to figure out who would get guard duty tonight. The Seasonals had it last night."

"Seasonal namely Cale," Anubis corrected sounding thoroughly miffed, "All because 'someone' didn't wake me up."

"Someone," Elayne shouted over her shoulder, "Didn't feel like dealing with a pissy Seasonal of Spring that early in the morning."

"I am not 'pissy,'" Anubis gritted out, "I don't wake up like Dais and Cale, thank you."

"Don't know, you come pretty close some mornings," Sekhmet added in with a smirk, "Remember the time you threw that nightstand at me?"

"That was an accident!" The red-head quickly protested, "And I had been drinking, so that was your own fault."

"Oh really?" Dais arched a white-eyebrow, "Whose fault was it that you were drinking?"

"Yours," Cale stated easily, "Remember? You dared him."

"I did no such thing!" Dais shot back angrily, "Not that night at least, it was your daring."

_**"Shut-up!"**_ Kayura and Elayne screeched at the top of their lungs.

The Lady Ancient scowled, "We had this argument on Sunday, I had to listen and endure it once, I don't want a repeat. Now be quiet!"

"Ditto to what she said," the girl chirped though she added, "I listened to enough of these arguments from the Moron Unit."

"Did not!" Five voices shouted in annoyance at her; hmm, guilty conscious much?

"Oh please, Ryo's sixteenth birthday party, and you all had sake. I can tell a hung over Ronin from a normal one, thank you ever so," she told them airily, adding, "You also had it at the make-up party, so don't give me that either."

Isamu let out a snort-like chuckle, and tossed his head a little, _'You think of everything don't you?'_

"I have to think of everything," Elayne stated coolly. "It's not like I got hired for my looks."

Kento snorted back a laugh, "You're something else mei mei."

* * *

Black Blaze ran alongside the great horse, ears twitching back and forth, as he suddenly growled low in his throat, _'I sense a great unrest the closer we get to the palace, this is wrong.'_

The black tiger was not the only one that felt this, the Ronin had been leery before, and now they were scanning the area twice as often.

The Seasonals were also greatly agitated, and the demon horses themselves were hesitant and reluctant to continue, the younger ones were prepared to bolt at a moment's notice.

_ 'Elayne,'_ Kayura sent to her quietly, _'Go ahead and tell them they've gone far enough, the others and I think it's best to continue the rest of the way on foot.'_

"Halt!" the girl commanded, and each horse slid to a perfect stop, she quickly and easily dismounted.

She bowed politely to the herd leaders, "Thank you Isamu, Kasumi. We cannot ask you to go any further; you've done more than enough for us. We are in your debt."

Kasumi gave a horse laugh, _'Nonsense, you owe us nothing. Besides, now we have gloating rights.'_

The girl let out a chuckle, and said in parting something that came close to, "May the ground be soft beneath your feet and the wind at your back." In human tongue, though it came out sounding considerably different.

The horses gave polite inclinations of their heads, then whirled around and galloped back the way they had come.

"That was an extremely corny saying," Sekhmet commented to her, having easily understood it.

"Not to them it isn't, it's probably the biggest compliment you can give one of their kind," she responded without much concern, "And why, do tell, was I the last to be informed of the unanimous decision?"

"You still have the link closed," Ryo told her coolly.

She gave a snort, "It was open to you not more than an hour ago; you guys just have selective observation skills."

Wildfire's bearer growled low in his throat, his eyes narrowed trying to alert the girl how far she was pushing it.

Her eyes narrowed, "You know what?" She hissed out and once more Sekhmet stepped in.

"Little sister, you know he isn't worth your time or effort," he chided gently, she narrowed her eyes further, and he realized he might be in trouble, but quickly came up with an answer, "Look you two can kill each other after we take care of the _cusalta_, all right?"

"Fine," Elayne relented. "Just keep him away from me, for the rest of the trip."

"Done." Sekhmet answered, relaxing the minute she went up and joined Kayura, he turned and looked at Ryo, "You are insane; I don't see why you push her buttons. She isn't the innocent you thought she was, you make her mad enough and she could put you into a coma. And after the stunt you pulled not that long ago, I'm surprised she hasn't poisoned your drink yet, or slit your throat."

He got an answer, since she had over heard him; "Too much like work."

* * *

"Finally!" Kayura said in relief, the palace now in complete view.

"Told you we'd be here in another fifteen minutes," Dais gloated to Cale proudly. "You owe me yen."

"Ya whatever," the Winter Seasonal grumbled irritably.

Anubis merely chuckled at the two, quite used to these antics now, after almost five hundred years you got used to being as quirky as they were.

"Wow," was all the Hardrock Ronin managed, and the Ronins of Halo, Strata and Torrent could only give mute nods in agreement.

The palace was still as tall and menacing looking as ever, but gone from in front of it was the long winding maze, now only straight walls to keep out unwanted visitors. There was not one bare spot of ground either, except for the concrete path ways. Here too, were the Sakura trees dotting the ground and certain types of bushes were also present.

Ryo grinned a little, "Told you it was different."

"Ready?" The Lady Ancient asked of them all.

"Yes," came the answer as they then headed down towards the gate.

The Wildfire Ronin eyed Elayne curiously, who seemed to be indifferent towards her surroundings as well as the people, she was trying very hard not to remind them she was there…Minus her earlier threats to him at least. Then again, he knew he had earned those.

The Ronin Leader gave an inward sigh he was going to have to pull her aside eventually, and apologize for what he had done. It was just a matter of catching her at a point she would permit it.

Nothing had changed about her, not overall…But there was one thing that certainly had changed; her tolerance. Elayne's infinite patience and kindness, had become Universe's finite patience due to how worn down the warrior was. He had caused her hurt, and whereas Elayne would've allowed him to apologize, Universe would keep her guard up to prevent herself from being hurt that way again.

Well, he'd manage to get her to listen to him eventually; it was just a matter of time.

* * *

Outa bowed, "Welcome back, Lady Kayura, and lords."

Niito looked up in surprise seeing the mortal girl among them, but thought better than mentioning it, "Obviously we weren't the only ones who had trouble in coming back. This only makes me worry more."

"No need," Anubis told the soldier reassuringly. "We are here, and we will handle it."

_ '__**If**__ we can find it,'_ Cale reminded him over the mental lines.

The Spring Seasonal scowled, but said nothing in return.

"Would you like an escort to the great hall?" Outa inquired, raising his eyes a bit.

"No we remember the way, thank you regardless," the Lady Ancient bowed her head and walked past them the Seasonals and Ronin Elementals returning the gesture.

Elayne however came to a complete halt, switching over in their language with little thought, **"I am curious, and forgive me for being so. But, did you get a general feel of where the energy spikes were by chance?"**

Niito frowned responding, after careful consideration of his thoughts, **"The southwest side pulsed weakly, but the northeast corridor was greater."**

** "Thank you," **She gave a full bow, and then jogged after the ten warriors hoping they had not noticed her absence. She gave a quick nod to Black Blaze who returned it, and the tiger then shot off like a bullet to start investigating some parts of the palace.

* * *

Sage was surprised something hadn't jumped out at him yet, the corridors were long and many branched into the main hall they were now walking down.

His violet eyes swept over the area, his keen sense of hearing also picked up the sound of soldiers whispering the name of their armors. He also caught excited whisperings of still other soldiers mentioning the fact there was a girl among the ten warriors, which was a rarity in itself. Or so he was starting to gather at least.

He frowned and looked behind him again, the Halo Ronin was starting to worry, Elayne still wasn't anywhere within his sight range. Where had she disappeared to?

'_Calm down,'_ his inner voice ridiculed him thoroughly, _'She's been guarding you for over three-thousand years, she can take care of herself.'_

'_But what if she can't?'_ the brother and warrior side demanded in annoyance, _'What if something happens?' _Like what had happened after Thanos stunt which she most likely would have died from without the Halo Ronin helping her to heal.

Sage turned to look back around, and almost stopped dead in his tracks, there she was up ahead deep in conversation with three dynasty soldiers and in their own tongue.

She would converse with one, get an answer from another, and then nod as the third added something. The crystal around her neck hummed slightly, probably alerting her that the Ronin had now all caught up to her, she said thank you, bowed, and trotted up to Kayura.

"Where have you been?" Cale asked with a severe frown.

"I'm a Sailor Scout, I was 'scouting,' duh," she quipped in amusement looking to Kayura, "I checked out what Niito mentioned, and it seems that he was right. The energy levels seem to be highest in the northeast corridor, and lowest in the southwest."

"That means someone is putting out a front," Anubis muttered distastefully, with a shake of his head.

The girl avidly nodded, murmuring lowly, "Yeah that was why I double checked his findings with the other soldiers. Someone knows it's here, they probably don't want it found."

"I hate to sound like Kento," Sekhmet grumbled out. "But I haven't eaten in two days and I can't think on an empty stomach."

Elayne swatted him in the arm, "I told you to eat before we left, but _no_ you had to prove that you're just as thick-headed as your counterpart."

"Hey!" Cye gave a pout, "I'm not that thick-headed."

"I meant it in a loving, endearing sort of way, Cye. Don't get your knickers in a knot Redcoat," she teased him.

"Bloody Yank," the Water Ronin shot back with a grin, which faded into a thoughtful frown, "How'd you get ahead of us and cover so much ground, anyway?"

Her face went completely neutral, as she merely told him, "Short-cuts."

* * *

"Yes!" Sekhmet exclaimed with a long sigh of relief as he slid into his seat at the table.

Dais chuckled at his friend, "Tired of walking, eh?"

He gave a nod, his green hair bobbed with the movement, "I happened to do a five-mile patrol before we left. My legs are _killing_ me."

"Better them killing you than me," Kayura teased at him, sliding into her seat at the head of the table.

Anubis rolled his eyes, taking up his seat on her right, "All right all of you settle down."

Cale sat down next to Anubis, and then motioned to the other Ronin, "Pick a seat, it doesn't matter where you sit, unless you prefer to stand."

They all gave nods, except for Ryo; he had already taken up position at the other end of the table, directly across from Kayura.

Not to Elayne's surprise the Ronins of Halo and Strata sat on the same side as the Summer and Fall Seasonals, while the bearer's of Torrent and Hardrock took the other side.

The girl merely let out a chuckle at this, leaning up against the wall and crossing her arms in front of her chest. A traditional Sage pose, the Winter Seasonal shook his head as he watched her; she tended to act like the Halo Ronin quite often in these types of situations, even if she wouldn't admit it.

"Don't you want to sit down?" Kayura asked her in alarm.

A vivid shake of raven hair came in response, "No thanks, I don't plan on staying in this room too long."

Ryo regarded her with a concerned look, though it seemed more like a glare to everyone else, "Why not?"

"Have things to do," she evasively answered.

Her head suddenly jerked upward, and she shot a glance at the door, eyes narrowing into a deepened glare.

Dais saw this immediately, and called loudly, "Enter."

Seeing that it was nothing more than one of the demon servants, she relaxed slightly, once more becoming like a statue.

"It is good that you have returned," It was an Oni, demons known for hunting the souls of those who did evil during their lifetimes.

They had not always served Talpa, the farthest their serving went was that of meals for the Warlords, they had never fought or anything of the like.

It paused a minute, "So you have brought the other Ronin with you as well? This is good; we have not had to cook for so many in ages. Will it be the usual?"

As Sekhmet opened his mouth to reply, he caught Elayne sending him a withering glare, he knew what that meant, "Yes, except save the wine for later. We have work to do."

"Very well then," the Oni bowed and started to walk out the door, when it caught movement out of the corner of its eye, and whirled.

Of course, the problem had already been taken care of by the time anyone realized what was going on. There had been sounds of scuffling, then a sword being drawn, and now the blade rested neatly against a ninja demon's throat, courtesy of Elayne.

The girl let out a chuckle in dry humor, "Any way to greet old allies, Tenri?"

It cracked a grin at her, "Just making sure it was you, Lady Universe. I've been hearing rumors that you had arrived with the Yoroiden."

She gave a snort and removed the katana he had drawn from his throat, "You couldn't have _asked_ me?"

"Where's the fun in that?" Tenri retorted getting to his feet, watching as she idly twirled the katana in her hands.

Elayne thought it over for a brief moment, "None I suppose. What are you doing here, anyway? Since when were you one of _**his**_ enlisted?"

"Never was, Gnash on the other hand," he left the sentence hanging, knowing she would finish it.

"That _blundering_ idiot? He couldn't breathe quietly if you paid him, let alone walk!" She chuckled again, "Arago would choose the lousiest of demons to be his henchmen, wouldn't he? I suppose there is justice after all. Idiot, he never was a very clever mortal perhaps even dumber as a demon."

It was the ninja demon's turn to chuckle, "Never forget a thing, do you? I was in this area, heard the rumors, and had to check them out. Your difference in appearance threw most everyone off, but I figured it was you. No normal mortal would have enough guts to try and come here."

"You needed to be quieter in checking out said rumors," she tossed the katana over her shoulder at him. "Kokuen-Oh was half-way tempted to eat you while you were following us to the palace."

"Ah, the black tiger is back is he?" Tenri caught the sword with little effort, and sheathed it. "I'll have to watch myself; he's never been too fond of me."

"Because you and Lord Kenbukyou always fought," the girl pointed out going back to leaning against the wall, "Now before you irritate Kayura any further, I'd go over and talk to her like you've been meaning to do."

He shook his head, withholding a chuckle and strode over, bowing before the Lady Ancient, "The agreements were made last week, like you asked."

She blinked her cobalt-blue-eyes a few times, trying to make sense of the conversation that had taken place, but gave up, "Thank you, if your services are needed again…"

"Yes, please let me know. In fact call me first, I get bored easily," Tenri grinned, bowed and with a wink to Elayne left the room.

She snorted back a laugh muttering in amusement, "Ha, there's an understatement."

* * *

The meal was most certainly filling, and true to her word the girl hadn't staid; she had asked permission to leave them and then vanished from sight.

Kayura and the Seasonals hadn't seemed worried about her safety, and then brought it to their attention that Universe _had _visited the Nether Realm at least three times that they knew of, and there was nothing to say she hadn't been there a lot often before that.

Just by Tenri's reaction and that of the other demons, her knowledge of all the short-cuts to certain corridors, proved she had been here before…And undoubtedly it was quite often.

However their thoughts had not lingered on this for too long, mostly on how to solve their current problem, and more importantly how to identify who would try and keep it hidden.

Kayura placed her head in her hands, letting out a groan, "This is going to be a lot more difficult than I thought. How do we even know what we're looking for?"

"Don't worry so much about it," Sage said in a calm voice. "Elayne seems to know exactly what she's looking for. If anyone can find it…"

"Found it!" The girl cried triumphantly, bouncing back into the dining hall pleased with herself, "South east corridor."

"You could've let him finish the sentence," Dais teased with a chuckle, earning him a rasp in the head from her.

"Shut-up spider-eye," she scolded him, turning her attention to Kayura, "A more in depth search tomorrow, perhaps Kay?"

The last of the Ancient's clan gave a nod, "Yes, agreed, it's late now." She stood up and directed her comment to the Ronin, "Come on, I'll escort you all to your rooms."

* * *

_A/N: Heh exceedingly long time with no update; my bad. Life has been busy and interesting, and while I've had my laptop back for a while now I'd completely forgotten about this being up here._ _Luckily I received notices from reviewers xD. So since you've not had an update in a long time, and it's been a year since I put this book up here, you're getting three chapters. Enjoy. _

_Thoughts and prayers go out to the Japanese people during this time of need.  
_

_LG  
_


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen:**

**Written: September 2006**

**Edited: April 21, 2008**

* * *

"Aw, you're just no fun Kayura," Elayne playfully pouted to the young woman.

The Lady Ancient gave a roll of her eyes in return, "No, I just know you well enough to know what type of trouble you can cause, and that's why you're sharing a room with me."

Having escorted each Ronin Elemental to their respective rooms for the night, assuring them that standing guard would not be necessary, now left Kayura alone with Elayne.

The Seasonals had already gone to their own rooms, which allowed the girl time to relax and let loose, while the men weren't around. She had switched out of her stiff nature immediately, already starting to poke fun at the Ronin...Seasonal and Elemental alike.

"You just don't trust me, is what you mean," the girl gave a wicked grin as she slyly added, "And as if I haven't seen them in nothing but boxers before, all of them."

Even Kayura had to pause at this, not quite believing her ears, "Seriously?"

Elayne gave a vigorous nod, "Granted, not all of it was in this life time, but still and all," the malicious grin was back. "I could give you details that would have them blushing, in nothin' flat."

Kayura laughed a little, "You can be innocent one minute and devious the next, I just don't get it."

Elayne gave a shrug of her shoulders, "Just a consequence of being alive so long I guess. That and acting innocent and devious all at once is rather dull.

"I suppose so," she shook her blue-head in amusement. After she cast a sideways glance at her companion, she frowned, "Are you all right?"

Kayura had noticed the girl looked slightly grim now, and if not out-of-sorts in some way, the Lady Ancient just could not put her finger on it.

"Fine. I'm just tired, ignore me."

"A good night sleep will help," Kayura assured in a calm tone.

Elayne gave a snort at hearing this, "I won't be sleeping until we get back to the mortal realm. I don't trust this place, never have. Too much has happened here for me to ever get a night's rest, never mind a _good_ one."

"You can't stay up the entire time! No one…" She stopped short, seeing the look Elayne was giving her.

"I once staid up for two weeks straight, and that was as me, not as Universe," the girl responded calmly, eyes immediately switching to the corridor ahead of her, as she slammed on the brakes, hissing out, "Who's there?"

Black Blaze hesitated a minute before responding with a low rumble, _'Just me.'_

"Oh," she relaxed slightly. "Find anything?"

_ 'Nothing interesting, ready to start patrolling?'_

"Ready ages ago," Elayne turned and offered Kayura a slight bow, "See you later Kay."

Before the Ancient could put up a protest, the Sailor of the Universe stood before her, and then in an instant, both warrior and tiger were gone.

She gave a shake of her head, and entered her room with a loud sigh, "Strange girl, and even stranger as a guardian."

* * *

Creatures of habit, that's what they were each and every one of them. If there was a problem, the warriors would come right away not knowing what they were getting themselves into.

An amused chuckle escaped his form, his mouth curving into a malicious smile, "Fools, you're right where I want you."

He had been working on this ever since he had discovered the rip not more than a month before. It had not taken him as much time to find Akemliek as he had thought it would, and once he had everything had moved quite effortlessly in to place.

Where he was once concerned about the Secondary Guardian he no longer concerned himself with her; Thanos had done well in getting to the others thus cutting her power effectively down.

He might have been concerned about Kayura, but without her full memories the Last of the Ancient's clan was practically useless in her role as guardian. And, yes, he was rather thankful for that odd blessing at this point in time.

It wouldn't take much for him to be able to slip around their senses, and even if Universe caught on, which he was aware would happen sooner or later, she didn't have the strength to stop what he planned.

Shinshou chuckled to himself, and then went on about his normal duties…Not spending another moment worrying about the coming future.

* * *

Anubis woke up early, perhaps too early for his own taste and liking. As he now stood and washed his face in the water basin, he tried to figure out what time it was and why he had stirred from his peaceful slumber.

He muttered something to himself, and picked up the watch he had left with his clothing. It had been a gift from the girl; she had said that because they were always so mixed up on the time that what the mortals called 'wrist watches' would come in handy. And how right she had been, he thought with a chuckle looking at the face of it before letting out a low groan.

It read and signified that it was three in the morning mortal time, which made it midnight Nether Realm time, he gave a roll of his eyes; it was going to be a tiring day.

He pulled on the Oriental style clothing that was required to be worn while in this realm, took a quick glance in the mirror to make sure he looked at least half-awake and slipped out of his room.

He crept along quietly, eyes scanning the corridor for any sign of movement, and he froze in place hearing murmurings up ahead of him…Female, of that he was certain.

The warrior came to a halt, being able to detect the presence of the Spring Seasonal up ahead of her, "You woke up rather early, don't you think?"

Anubis let out a sigh of relief as he rounded the corner, "Did you even bother to go to sleep?"

"Nope," the Senshi answered, "Kokuen and I have been patrolling the halls; I can detect nothing evil here."

"Hmm," a frown crossed his face immediately, "Then who could be masking this rift from us?"

"I don't know," she murmured softly, "That's what bothers me. We've paced most of the halls, and we can't find anything. Not a strand of energy out of place, or even missing."

"Come, I'll walk with you," the Seasonal of Spring said, "We can discuss what you have learned so far."

The Secondary Guardian gave a nod, easily falling into step with the man at her side, the black tiger trailing never too far behind them.

* * *

The walked around for quite sometime, tossing theories back and forth. Time passed quite easily as they discussed the many possibilities, and potential answers to the problems. Of course all of it mattered very little; they needed to find the cusalta before they could do anything.

"Yes," Anubis agreed, "You have right to worry about this. I have been worried ever since we arrived, something is very wrong here."

"Malice," Universe whispered quietly, "It lingers here still, and someone is using that to hide the rift and themselves. That is the only way I can explain why this is happening, I don't like it Koma, not one bit."

He let out a chuckle, "You've no need to use the formalities any longer. We are friends and allies."

"Hehe, I keep forgetting the name thing. It wasn't so bad when I was only half-awake, I didn't make the slip ups," she rubbed at the back of her neck. "Thanks for telling me that though, I appreciate it."

She then sighed, "Now if I just knew what to do about this mess. If Thanos and Akemliek know about it, and you are assuming they do, and I agree it'd make a lot of sense, they can't be the ones masking it."

"Why not though?"

The Senshi shook her head, "They don't have the kind of power required to tamper with things of this nature…Not in this realm at any rate. Akemliek's power can't reach here unless _he_ comes here himself."

"I see," Spring's bearer muttered. "So our list of suspects has grown even shorter. In fact, now it's practically nonexistent."

"Don't misunderstand me, Anubis," Universe assured him. "Thanos and Akemliek have a hand in this, but there is someone else involved as well…That someone is from the Nether Realm."

The red-haired man scowled, "Unfortunately, that makes sense. If Akemliek cannot affect the gates and lock us out, it is someone from this end. And they are also likely masking the rip so we cannot detect it."

"Afraid so," she sighed out, rubbing at her forehead.

The Spring Seasonal checked his watch, "Well the others should be waking up now. I still wonder why I awoke so earlier though. An hour I can understand, but more than three?"

"Your armor is restless, it knows something is wrong and wants to fix it as soon as it can," the Senshi explained, "Since you were not as physically exhausted as the others, you woke up."

"Have an answer for every question, don't you?" Anubis remarked in amusement.

She gave a smirk, "Not for every one, but most of them. After all, no one expected you and the other Ronin to be the brains behind this outfit."

Somehow, the look of pure shock on his face truly made that snippy comment oh-so-worth it.

* * *

When he stirred that morning, the Ronin of Torrent was actually surprised by the fact he had managed a decent night's sleep. Perhaps he had been more tired than he thought? No matter, there were more important things to worry about.

He had slipped out of his subarmor, and taken off his clothes, and now he put them back on…Stretched, and then calmly exited the room.

Along his way to the dining hall he met up with Kento, and the two started a light conversation about what the next step would be now that the general location of the problem had been found.

They entered the hall, surprised to already find it near to full occupancy.

Rowen, Sage and Ryo were already present giving slight waves to their friends, before directing their attention back to Anubis who had been talking in a hushed voice.

Sekhmet and Dais came in behind their rivals just as the two Elemental Ronin sat down in their seats.

"Where's Kayura?" the Summer Seasonal demanded near immediately.

"Checking up on the soldier's reports, with Cale," Rowen quickly responded, "I won't be surprised if she comes back alone."

A snort of a laugh from a darkened corner, caused their attentions to be diverted that way, except for Anubis he continued to go over the parchment in front of him.

"She promised me she wouldn't kill him, or beat him up _too_ badly," Elayne told them, leaning back in a chair. Her muscles ached from having walked so much of the palace the night before; even though she had used all the short-cuts and secret passageways she had still done a lot of walking.

"Good morning, Elayne," Sage murmured in acknowledgement.

"Heh, what's so good about it?" She grumbled, shifting in the chair and closing her eyes. She had been meditating before the others had walked in, it had replenished some of her exhausted strength, just enough to get her through the day.

"Nothing so far," Kayura answered in irritation stalking through the door, and plopping into her seat, face contorted with rage.

Cale was looking just as peeved as the Ancient, as he sat in his seat slamming a fist on the table, "The back wall has been near destroyed, and it happened without anyone's knowledge! There's no telling how many uninvited guests we have had, or still have!"

The girl opened an eye, "Could you tell how old the break was?"

"Not more than two weeks at most, but what bothers me is the soldiers should have noticed it long ago," the Winter Seasonal answered. "I think it might be more recent."

She got to her feet, "I'll check it. If nothing else, the crystal should be able to negate whatever magic was used. Where is it?"

"Uh," Kayura blinked a few times, "Outside of Hall E."

The girl gave a bow of thanks, and quickly left the room, she knew this place like the back of her hand. Having been an unwanted guest so many times before, it certainly did help.

* * *

Dais let out a chuckle, as breakfast was served, "I'll give her one thing she serves as an entertaining distraction. There probably isn't a place in the Nether Realm that doesn't know a mortal girl is here. Each has already pegged her as being the Ambassador, it's amusing."

"To you maybe," Sage tartly said, he paused in eating. "Not to the rest of us."

Cale bit back a laugh, "Ah Halo that's because you five are too over protective of her for your own good. She is no child; she doesn't need to be looked after."

"You think we don't know that?" Rowen growled low in his throat, sending the man a death glare.

Kento gave an agreeing nod, "And who says she doesn't need to be looked after?"

The Seasonal of Fall let out a howl of laughter, "With how you've looked after her the past few weeks, I know I would want to do without!"

The Ronin Elementals growled, glaring contemptuously at the man.

"Boys, boys," Elayne ridiculed, before they decided to kill one another…Coming back into the room and only catching Sekhmet's comment. "I leave for two minutes and already your testosterone levels are in need of being cut. Honestly, can't you all learn how to behave?"

She rolled her eyes, and said to Kayura, "Cale's right if it were truly as old as two weeks the soldiers would've noticed such a breach long before now. According to what I could get from the crystal, it's as recent as last night."

"So we are dealing with an insider," Dais frowned, having finished his food.

Rowen shrugged, "Question is, who is it?"

"Well, I suggest we start searching to find out," Ryo said calmly.

Kayura gave a shake of her head, "That's the worst thing you could do at this point. Provoking something before you are ready for it, is exceedingly foolish Ryo, you know better than that by now." She paused, "Especially with your memories back."

"Never liked sitting around much, Kayura," the Ronin Leader stated, rolling his eyes skyward. "So what do you suggest we do? We can't find the rip, and you don't want us to look for the person behind the problem."

"Practice," Elayne calmly brought in now. "There are certain things you used to be able to do, and it's about time you all learned how to make use of that power again. Being here won't tax on your strength as much as it would in the Nigenkai."

Kento seemed mildly interest in this, "Have something specific in mind, mei mei?"

"Mhm," she gave a wry grin. Then said when the Ronin were all looking at her with interest awaiting her to explain, "Of course, that doesn't mean I'm going to share." She bit down a laugh when they almost fell out of their chairs, Kayura didn't even bother to do that, she simply cracked up.

* * *

**Akemliek's Domain**

Thanos let out a sigh as he walked down the long unending cavern hallway, his gray-green flecked eyes flickered slightly as they moved from side to side. Overall, he was pleased that the events that had transpired a little over a week ago had gone so well.

Shinshou had checked in with Akemliek the night before, curious as to whether the plan had worked. The spirit had been relieved to hear that things had gone quite well, and that there were even some lingering effects.

The spirit had not remained in contact long, fearful that someone might overhear something and thus catch him in the act. He assured Akemliek he would be able to handle the rest of it from there, and that the being would know when the time to act came.

So for now? Thanos was stuck idly wandering the halls of the domain, with nothing better to do with his time and absolutely no one to talk too. Oh _sure_ he could try and talk to his _'Master' _but previous attempts to do so had him leaving the room with a pounding headache and, he was pretty sure, with blood coming from his ears.

Well, he certainly couldn't blame Akemliek for being deprived of 'company' for a little over a thousand years, but he failed to see why the being had to make up for all the missed time in _one_ sitting.

Yeah, his life probably couldn't get _any _worse. His sister was dead and gone, leaving him with only Akemliek to talk with…And listening to his Master babble was not so great, because the being _refused_ to shut up.

"I hope Shinshou doesn't take forever in executing his plan," Thanos moodily grumbled. "Otherwise, I _will_ take up the habit of torturing innocents in my spare time." Or anything else to avoid being stuck in the domain with Akemliek.

* * *

_A/N: I'm sorry. Let me just condense: everything was going pretty good and then got severely fucked with on a personal life level. I'm still trying to figure out how to deal. I'm tired, of people, of being used by others for their own selfish needs, of being relied upon and not being able to have someone reciprocate. I'm tired of hurting others just by trying to do things for myself and by myself. I'm tired of people playing the victim to make me feel bad for them when I'm the one they're really destroying, piece by piece. Then my laptop died; along with it very important things, some more than others. I now have a new laptop and all my stories were backed up, even the ones in the development stages. SO, all of TGOL is still very much intact save for the changes I had made to Book V. Will I ever finish this series? Probably not. But I will do what I can, you never know what tomorrow might bring. Thanks for being loyal to these characters and this series; it puts a smile on my face :)_

_-LG _


	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen:**

**Written: April 21, 2008**

**Typed Up: April 23, 2008**

Kayura had decided that using the palace garden would be the most appropriate place to perform the practice session Elayne had in mind. Neither guardian was all that surprised when upon entering said garden the Seasonals walked over and sat down.

Obviously, whatever interest they had earlier held had been quickly lost. They were more intent on watching to see what would happen most likely. Not that Kayura and Elayne had expected any different from them.

The five Ronin now stood in front of the two women, eyeing both waiting for one of them to say something. Rowen was quick to turn his head to his leader and query, "Why are you bothering with this?"

Ryo blinked a minute not quite getting where that question had come from, then it dawned on him and he answered, "I might have my memories back, but I've had to rebuild my abilities. Most I can't remember how to use."

Sage listened to this with a thoughtful frown, to his right Kento was impatiently waiting instruction, while to his left the Torrent Ronin stood. The blond swordsman cast a sideways glance at Cye. Overall, the auburn-haired man looked apprehensive about this. Yet, Sage was quick to turn his attention back to the front.

* * *

"All right you guys," Kayura said in amusement. "Elayne's going to give you a crash course." She then skipped over and sat down next to the Seasonals, pleased with leaving the Secondary Guardian to this task.

The girl snorted, "Gee, _thanks._" She rolled her violet eyes, and then said to the five in front of her, "We're going to try and see if we can't get you to actually draw out your elemental based power without your armors."

"So, no subarmor?" the Ronin of Hardrock queried, having expected her to ask them to call it.

"No subarmor," Elayne confirmed with a nod, and added to the looks, "I get the stares of disbelief, and the one or two concerning whether I'm crazy or not. I am crazy, accept it and move on."

She chuckled when they rolled their eyes at her, and said on a more serious note, "Let me explain this. You already know that the armors are the links between you and the elements. You are the _elements_ chosen, first and foremost. The armors from Talpa might have appeared to lend you power, but what they actually did was awaken the power you already had."

"And the newer armors?" The Ronin of Trust asked in a quiet tone.

"Closer to the original armors, from my lifetime. But, as far as power goes? They're completely different. I'm sure you must've felt the enormous drain after using the armors those first few fights with the Raikken?"

Ryo nodded to this, "Yeah, we did."

"That's because it was your power you happened to be using, not theirs. The armors now are only providing a check on your power to keep you from harming yourselves," Elayne said in a calm tone.

"But, since they started to take down certain blocks, its important we get a handle on whatever power they no longer guard," Sage finished for her, having picked up where the conversation was going.

"Exactly. So, really, all you have to do is concentrate your elemental power to the palm of your hand, and we'll see what happens."

Not surprisingly, the minute the words left her mouth, a small ball of flame had appeared in Ryo's palm, and the Wildfire Ronin gave a sheepish grin.

"See? All I needed was someone to tell me how to do it," he cheerfully commented.

"Show off," the archer grumbled out, saying to Elayne and holding out his right hand, "I don't see how its possible, though."

"You flew without a protective bubble the last time, right?" When he nodded, she merely added, "Case and point, you were flying under your own power then."

The Ronin of Strata grumbled and rolled his eyes, he felt that this was _stupid_. And what really irked him was the fact that Ryo had not put any effort into trying this, and then easily pulled it off. Honestly…

"Ah!" Rowen yelped out and jumped back, having been unprepared for the small whirlwind to appear in his palm. At her spot next to the Seasonal of Spring, Kayura let out a snigger at him. The blue-haired archer turned his head and glared at her.

She gave a smirk, and responded by flipping him off. Now, his look of annoyance doubled, only to fade and have his face go pink when Elayne commented in a bored tone, "You two are more than welcome to get a _room_. And spare the rest of us from your shenanigans."

Kayura flushed red, and then ducked her head down to hide that fact.

"Nice Ro," Hardrock's bearer chortled out, noticing Elayne was looking at him. "My turn huh?" When she nodded, he gave a heavy sight, but complied.

It took him a few minutes, but he managed to get it. The earth swirled around in his palm, and then dissipated after he broke off the concentration.

Ryo clapped him on the back, "Way to go."

"Heh, thanks," Kento rubbed at the back of his neck, a little embarrassed at the praise.

Sage had been prepared to comment only to see that Elayne was now staring at him with a pointed look. He rolled his eyes at this, before easily calling his element forward.

"I _hate_ you," the Hardrock Ronin joked; his way of congratulating the swordsman.

"Power's tied into our emotional states," the blond remarked, willing the light away. "Halo's been awakening the latent abilities longer than the other armors. It's nothing more than that.

"Anything to avoid praise eh?" the Ronin Leader chuckled, almost outright laughing when the swordsman responded by scowling at him.

Elayne ignored their banter, her attention on Cye, she had early on sensed his wariness, why she had spared him from trying…Up until now at any rate. "Want to give it a whirl?"

"What if it doesn't work?"

The girl shrugged at his form of protest, "Then we try again tomorrow, simple as that."

"Probably wouldn't work then either," the Warrior of Trust complained. "If it doesn't work tomorrow, then what?"

"I threaten your armor to get with the program, then hold you over the edge of one of the millions of cliffs here in the Nether Realm and threaten to _drop_ you."

"Oi, you," Cye absolutely hated it when she got to be a smart-ass…Well, she was _normally_ a smart-ass. As of late that nature had been extremely biting. He scowled when she started laughing, demanded, "What's so funny?"

"Cye, dear," she wiped at her eyes with her thumb. "Look at your hand."

His sea-green eyes widened when he saw the spiraling water in his palm, "Bloody hell!"

He studied the flowing liquid, and how it almost appeared like metal due to how it was reflecting everything around it. Yet it had that water-like quality, and all of a sudden a devious grin crossed his face.

* * *

"Oh Rowen?" Cye waited till he knew he had Strata's attention and then lobbed the ball of water at him. "Heads up!"

"Oh, _hell_ no!" the archer commented, pushing the water ball away from him by forcing the wind back into his palm deflecting it to Kento.

Hardrock's bearer wasn't in a mood to get drenched either, and he quickly acted, using the earth he conjured forming a curved slope…So instead of it hitting a wall and dispersing, the projectile traveled up the ramp and went flying through the air once more. This time hurtling towards Sage.

The swordsman of Halo simply chuckled and refracted the light in his hand causing the water to bounce off and go straight for Ryo.

The Ronin Leader permitted himself a smirk as he used the flame's heat to prevent the water from drying up, and to direct it in a new direction…Straight towards Elayne.

The girl shook her head, reached out with one finger, and touched it to the water coming her way, turning it into ice and catching the ball before gravity pulled it down. She held the frozen sphere lightly in her hands.

"Not bad you guys," Elayne remarked. "Not only did the armors move quicker than I thought you also picked up on it immediately. You also seem to have mastered it rather fast, as demonstrated with Cye's little water bomb making the around the world trip without losing a droplet."

They seemed to be rather pleased with the praise, Ryo and Rowen outright beamed at it. Sage knew something else was up though, because he could see the grin on her face, so he waited.

"So, I guess you deserve something for pulling that off," Elayne mused, "Have a football!"

She let the sphere drop and gave it a good hard kick, sending it spiraling back to Ryo. The Ronin of Wildfire jumped up and bumped it with his head, lowering it to his knee, bumped it with that, and then kicked it once it reached ground level.

It went skittering across the lawn, and the other four gave a collective shrug and then immediately dove after it.

Elayne chuckled and walked over to the Seasonals, plopping down next to Cale and leaning back on the grass.

"That was training?" he asked in a disbelieving tone.

"I figured out ages ago that things go quicker if you all happen to be interested in what you are doing," she answered, closing her eyes. "Less of an inconvenience to you, and less of a migraine for me."

"That went fairly well," Kayura sounded mildly surprised. "I can't believe it, actually. And, why didn't you four par-" the four men had exchanged looks and then called their respective power to their palms. "Never mind."

Dais cast a glance at the Secondary Guardian, noticing that though her eyes were shut, a scowl had settled onto her face, "What's the matter?"

"I don't like them being here," the girl was referencing the Ronin. "I can only shield them from so much; and what I can do, won't last for a great length of time…I'm just far too weak at this point."

"Let us hope we can resolve the issue quickly then," Sekhmet said.

Both guardians were silent, doubting it would be _that_ simple. Suddenly all six snapped their attention back to the Ronin upon hearing the collective "Ack!" that had been issued.

Apparently, the five had gotten so wrapped up in their "game" they had failed to notice the exceedingly large pond they were fast approaching. Well, nobody _realized_ until they fell in, anyway.

* * *

"Oi!" The Lady Ancient called out at them, "That was _graceful_, you guys."

The five young men muttered to themselves, before getting out of the water and retreating to the rooms they were using. They needed to dry off and change now, preferably before Kayura started making sly comments of a different nature.

"They're such kids," the young woman complained to Elayne.

The girl had already laid back down and shut her eyes, "Mhm."

To test to see if her friend was really listening the Lady Ancient commented, "Oh well. At least they are easy on the eyes."

Elayne cracked a violet eye open to peer at her, and remarked slyly, "Don't you mean, Rowen is easy on _your_ eyes?"

Kayura leveled a glare at the girl, whom merely smirked in response and shut her eye again. Yeah, Elayne _had_ been listening.

* * *

_A/N: Football= as in soccer; America happens to be the only country that calls it soccer. Everyone else calls it football._


	17. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen:**

**Written: September 2006**

**Rewritten/Edited: April 24, 2008**

* * *

"Good thing we brought an extra pair of clothes," Kento commented rather enjoying the fact he was now dry. That water had been _ice_ cold and he would not have looked forward to being stuck in them practically all day.

Kayura gave them a smirk, "Do I wish to speculate as to how you all managed to bring an extra set?"

"Please don't," Elayne moaned out rubbing at her forehead. "I know how your mind works; kindly speculate when I'm not in ear shot, or within mind-reading range."

"You're just no fun!" The Lady Ancient said with a pout.

Elayne gave a nod, "Mhm. When you get to be as old as I am, all the humor for such things gets sucked right out of you." She smirked, "Leaving one with dry wit, and an extremely warped outlook on life."

"Not commenting on that one," the Summer Seasonal remarked with an innocent whistle. "I could, but I won't."

The Seasonals, plus the two guardians, had waited for the Ronin Elementals to return, and then all had made their way down to the dining hall once more. It was now time for the noonday meal, and a select few were rather hungry.

"All right," Ryo said taking his seat. "That was an enlightening little training session, but we're still no closer to solving the problem we are here to correct."

"We checked while you changed, we still can't find anything even remotely out of place," the green-haired Seasonal of Fall lamented.

Cale gave a nod, "Aside from that wall being torn down, everything appears to be normal; if only at the surface at any rate. The energy levels here are fluctuating abnormally. We currently have the youja searching all parts of the palace."

"They will notify us when they find something," Kayura assured. "For right now all we can do is wait."

"Our least favorite thing in the world," the Hardrock Ronin pointed out, as he munched on the food that had just been delivered.

Anubis gave a soft snort, "We do not like waiting any more than you do, especially when it concerns such grave matters. However, at this time we have little choice in the matter."

"Aren't ya hungry?" the archer queried of Elayne, who had once more taking up a spot against the wall.

She shook her head in response, eyes closed and breathing at a slow methodical pace.

"Oo-kay," Rowen shrugged, if she had a desire to starve herself to death that was her problem not his.

Not surprisingly, a good deal of the occupants in the dining hall were now staring at the girl, obviously not thrilled with her lack of appetite.

Elayne didn't even bother to open her eyes as she said, "Oi! Here's an idea, why don't you all get married and have kids so you can baby them instead of me?"

That was enough to get them to mind their own plates and leave her alone, if only for now at any rate. She'd probably get reprimanded for not eating later. Oh joy, she was _so_ looking forward to that.

Things were relatively quiet in the room, but the silence did not last for long. The doors to the dining hall burst open, and a dynasty soldier walked in, it was Nitto.

"Lady, lords, guests," he bowed his head to each in turn, before straightening.

Sekhmet looked up from his plate in mild-interest, "What have you to report?"

"A number of youja made an interesting note," Nitto began. "It would seem that one of the much older parts of the palace was having repairs done to it. All the work that was done was uprooted, that is, it collapsed for no apparent reason."

Kayura was frowning, "And you said that over the past few weeks a number of maintenance work has fallen apart for no reason, correct?" The dynasty soldier gave a nod, and Kayura's frown deepened. "What part of the palace are you now referring to?"

"Southeast corridor, Kayura-hime," Nitto responded.

Elayne's eyes shot open upon hearing this, her head jerking up to glance at the youja, "Are you absolutely certain?"

Nitto gave a nod, "Yes, they were quite adamant about this."

"Great," she grumbled out, that was not a good sign at all.

Cale frowned at the girl, but said to Nitto, "Thank-you for informing us, please keep us posted."

Nitto bowed again and then exited the room without speaking another word.

Sage was looking at the girl, who was biting at the tip of her thumb as if in thought, "Are you going to share?"

"With _my_ luck the cusalta is down that end," the Secondary Guardian moaned out, now rubbing at her forehead. "I shouldn't be so surprised, that area has always been weaker than the other spots. Still don't know why."

"Well then, let's look into it," the Ronin of Wildfire announced, getting to his feet now. Eager to try and get this matter resolved as quickly as possible.

Elayne grimaced, but kept her objection to herself. What they did was up to them, she would merely follow up on whatever decision they had made.

Kayura let out a sigh, "Looking can't hurt, I suppose. Though I do worry about what our unknown foe might do. If we provoke before we are ready, we are going to be in a lot of trouble."

"Don't worry," the Ronin of Torrent cheerfully quipped, "I'm sure in between you and Elayne, you can keep the nine of us out of fatal harm."

It was not at all reassuring to them when both women burst out laughing upon hearing this. Apparently, Cye's statement had not had the intended affect. Of course, the nine men should not have been so surprised.

* * *

**A Short Time Later**

The Ronin of Water cast a look at the man lagging behind him, noting the Spring Seasonal was examining every room as they walked past.

Anubis tilted his head to the side and listened, quiet; peace and quiet there hadn't been such things during Talpa's reign. No, back then the halls had been filled with echoing screams of terror from his victims whether they were mortal or demon.

He gave an involuntary shudder, it may be home in some respects, but he certainly could do without the memory of the screams and moans of those being tortured to death.

It was not an easy image to erase from his mind. At times, it almost felt like the memory was still occurring…Anubis shuddered again.

"You all right?" Cye asked in alarm as he came to a complete halt. His young face was rimmed in both worry and concern.

"Fine," Anubis replied quietly, though that was far from the truth. He felt light-headed and uneasy as they continued to proceed down this hall.

"Anubis?" The Ronin of Trust began quietly, "Did Elayne sleep at all last night?"

"No," The Seasonal answered, "She and the tiger were patrolling, she had hoped to find or scare whoever is causing this trouble. She could find nothing however."

Cye bit his lip, "I'm starting to worry about her. She doesn't seem to be herself here."

"Ah, she is most likely suffering from the strain of shielding you and the other four," the Spring Seasonal remarked. "It is also quite possible she is shielding all of us."

"I wouldn't put it past her," Torrent's bearer said by way of agreement. "Yet, it bothers me that she would do such a thing."

"It is hard to accept the fact that as Universe Elayne has been doing such things for millennia," Anubis pointed out. "Without our full memories it does seem absurd for someone to do that. However, we know she has been doing this for a long time."

The Torrent Ronin nodded, "And she can't simply stop being one way or the other, even if the two personalities melded."

The two fell silent as they continued their walk down the hall; the southeast corridor was enormous. So much so that it had required the Ronin and Seasonals to split up and cover the ground.

Of course, little did they realize they had walked straight into a trap.

Five minutes, and several feet further down the hall, later Anubis came to a complete stop. Was it just him or were the screams getting louder?

Cye had also stopped, hearing cries of a different nature, the smell of burning gasoline was easy for him to detect, and his stomach churned.

_ 'Not this, not again,' _he was rooted to the spot afraid that if he moved he would be stuck in that nightmare all over again. But the images came unbidden regardless, and the Ronin of Torrent very nearly lost his balance.

All the two men were able to distinguish was someone grabbing them, and teleporting them away from the corridor.

* * *

Kayura let out a breath, now having calmed herself down, the images and noise that had attacked her while walking down the corridor were gone.

She watched as once more Elayne appeared, but this time with the remaining of her charges; the girl then slumped against the wall panting heavily.

The girl had been walking along the corridor with the Ronin of Strata and Seasonal of Summer, the deeper they went the more abnormal their behaviors became, and then it hit her with full force as to what was going on.

The Secondary Guardian had quickly reacted, grabbing both men and teleporting back to the dining hall, she then located everyone else and did the same.

She continued to struggle for breath, not wanting to think about how long it had been since she had to move _that_ fast.

"Anymore…Bright…Ideas?" she finally wheezed out, glaring at the Wildfire Ronin with as much contempt as she could muster.

Ryo ignored this, grumbling aloud, "What the _hell_ just happened?"

Cale shook his head to clear his thoughts, "I'm not sure."

"Someone…" Elayne murmured, her fight for air becoming less now as her body recovered from her actions, "Is using a spell to tamper with the energy in the area. For some reason it's toying with past memories, what ones I have no idea. At any rate, safe to say we're dealing with a professional here."

Kento let out a low moan and rubbed at his forehead, trying to fight back the migraine that had now appeared, "And do we have any idea as to who that is?"

"If it were Thanos, or even Akemliek, we would've picked up on it," Kayura said in a quiet tone. "We've already agreed that it has to be someone from this end."

Sekhmet rolled his eyes, "Problem being an obvious foe is not quite so easy to name, as most beings here would love to see us dead. Hell, just humans in general."

"Great," the archer grimaced. "That makes me feel _so _much better. Why didn't I stay home?"

Sage ignored his best friend's complaints, as he looked to Elayne, "How do we get around this newly discovered problem?"

The girl warily got to her feet, and leaned back against the wall to keep upright, "You don't. You have to go through it."

"Please tell me you're joking!" Cye grimaced, "From what I saw in here, none of us can go through there without coming close to passing out."

"That's what our enemy wants," Kayura grumbled in annoyance, crossing her arms in front of her. "For now, they have succeeded."

Dais and Cale exchanged a look, before the blue-haired man gave a nod and the Summer Seasonal spoke, "Cale and I will do what we can to find spells that might negate this ones usage. We know what we are dealing with, so it shouldn't be all that hard to find something."

"Until then, we are at an impasse," Anubis remarked, sounding quite displeased.

The Lady Ancient gave a nod, "Afraid so. It's late, we all should try and get some sleep and start again tomorrow. While Dais and Cale are sequestered to the library, the rest of us can fan out and check things over to see what else might be out of place."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and the nine men dispersed heading off to their rooms for the night. Kayura lingered however, casting a glance at her fellow guardian whose eyes were tightly shut. She suddenly became aware that she was being stared at, and opened them letting out a sigh. The two then exited the room; there was little need to talk about what was going on. They already knew there was nothing they could do…For now.


	18. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

**Written: September 2006**

**Revised: April 28, 2008**

* * *

His breathing was coming in as short shallow gasps, and as he continued to thrash about his limbs became only more tangled in the sheets. Rowen was not the type to often get nightmares, but when he did they certainly were harsh ones.

The archer's frantic struggle and plaintive whimpers of distress had not gone unnoticed by the black tiger who had easily returned to the habit of stalking down the palace halls.

Now the great beast nudged the door open, and entered remarking over his shoulder, _'The night before last it was Torrent, last night it was Hardrock. An hour ago it was Halo and now it's Strata. I'm beginning to think the enemy is doing this at this point.'_

"I don't know," Elayne murmured as she entered the room, making her way over to the struggling form and kneeling down next to him. All notice of the tiger was gone, as she focused solely on the young man.

She placed a hand to his forehead, murmured in a soothing tone, "Easy Rowen, just take it easy." A frown was on her face, which deepened when the symbol on his forehead flickered in.

Black Blaze's eyes widened in alarm, _'Again?' _

"It's the armors way of saying they are in distress," the girl murmured, closing her eyes and concentrating pushing away the dark memories with one forceful shove. It did not seem content to back away, but it released him and vanished.

"You're fine now," she said to the sleeping Ronin in a soft tone. "Just rest."

The symbol on his forehead faded back out, and his breathing returned to normal, the tiger and girl did not speak a word as they exited the room, making sure to gently shut the door behind them.

_'You all right hime?' _the black tiger asked in concern noticing that she had become pale and that she was also panting slightly.

Elayne paused in their walk and leaned back against the wall, shutting her eyes to try and stop her vision from spinning so much, "No, the sooner we get this fixed and them out of here I'll be fine. Until then, this is the way it is going to be."

Black Blaze nodded his understanding, and without a word further the two went back to their patrolling of the palace hallways.

* * *

**Later That Morning**

Two days, the Halo Ronin scowled, they had been in the Nether Realm for an additional two days and still nothing had been solved. He was becoming agitated and restless; the lingering evil that was here did little to calm him.

A frown came to his face, and he gave a toss of his head in impatience. The blond recalled having had a nightmare earlier. Or rather a memory of what had transpired when he had been here before.

Sage inwardly shuddered at the memory itself, before his frown deepened. As of late all of them had become restless, the longer they remained here the more it started to affect their personalities and the more it seemed to be showing in their sleep.

All he wanted to know was how Elayne had known he was in distress…He hadn't heard her enter the room, but the swordsman had been able to feel her presence and that of the tiger. They had been there, he was sure of it.

Was it possible she was shielding them as much as she possibly could, and had simply picked up on the fact he was in trouble? It was possible, he reasoned in his head, more than possible actually.

Sage quickly woke up to the world around him once more, upon hearing yelling, and almost being run over by a fast moving, raven haired object, which turned out to be Elayne.

"Give me back my headband!" Rowen shouted angrily from his room.

Elayne let out a child-like laugh, "Not a chance Rowie! A deal is a deal!"

"Hey," the Halo Ronin grumbled not at all appreciating almost being flattened, "What are you doing?"

She paused and batted her eyelashes at him in an innocent fashion, "Rowen said he wouldn't come out of his room, unless I managed to grab his headband. Now I have it."

He raised a golden eyebrow at her, "What else?"

A devious grin crossed her face, "I bet him 1000 yen that he can't catch me and get it back without help. Wanna join us?"

"Sage!" the blue-haired archer angrily hollered, stalking out of his room, "Grab her."

The swordsman let out a chuckle, and the smallest of smiles played across his lips, "Maybe later Elayne."

"Kay Nii-chan!" She chirped with a wink, before running off down the hall.

The young man could only shake his head at her in belated amusement. Blinking his violet eyes, when Rowen dashed after her shouting about how he was going to kill her.

For the first time since he had been in the Nether Realm, the Ronin of Halo laughed.

* * *

"I'm going to kill you!" the Strata Ronin hollered for what had to be the umpteenth time.

The girl seemed unfazed, quickly jumping up and over Kento, to avoid running into him, "Not if you can't catch me!"

"What's going on?" the Warrior of Strength demanded in confusion.

Rowen let out a whine of complaint, "She stole my headband!"

"You dared me to do it!" Elayne shot back, "You said you wouldn't come out if I didn't."

"Ya well you had no right to add on an additional term," the Strata Ronin protested, though he was grinning.

"You agreed to it!" Elayne stuck her tongue out at him, as she dangled the headband in front of him.

The Ronin of Hardrock chuckled, "What's this additional term?"

She grinned, "Well, I bet blue-boy a thousand yen that he can't catch me without help. You want to join us?"

"All right," He gave a nod in agreement, "Not like I have anything else to do around here."

Elayne let out a chuckle, and once more took off down the hall, putting the headband around her neck so that she wouldn't drop it.

* * *

The Seasonal of Fall heard the cries all too clearly, but instead of being that of battle, they were one of play, to his relief.

Hardrock was shouting at the girl, while the Strata Ronin was trying to catch her. Elayne merely laughed and leapt out of the way, returning their swearing with taunts and teasing.

Sekhmet chuckled to himself, figuring out what she was doing and why, with a rueful shake of his green hair, he walked on towards the dining hall.

Meanwhile, Ryo was pacing the halls nervously; he and the Lady Ancient were still having no luck in finding a way past the spell.

Dais and Cale had spent nearly all their time searching the library, and he had been aiding Kayura in employing spells to see if any would work. Both had come to the conclusion that they could not wait on results from the two Seasonals, with the rate the cusalta could be growing at, and with the fact the other four were stuck here in the Nether Realm.

Unfortunately, they were having about as much luck as Dais and Cale…Absolutely none at all.

"Damn it," the Wildfire Ronin growled in annoyance, before turning around to pace some more…Only to be knocked to the floor by someone.

His blue eyes went wide in surprise, while the violet did the same, but her reaction was more in shock than anything else.

"S-sorry!" Elayne apologized, but her voice held a nervous edge to it. Man, she had taken a lot of care to steer clear of him, and now fate had decided to let her fall into a rather awkward position; literally and figuratively.

Ryo let out a light chuckle, though he was inwardly cringing at the fact that there had been fear in her voice. He pretended not to have noticed, and teased, "Is it my day to get tackled or something?"

He was all the more amused when she quickly pushed herself off of him, and the Ronin Leader could've sworn her cheeks went pink at his comment.

"No!" Elayne nearly shouted out, before getting a hold on herself. "I made a bet with Rowen, and now am avoiding him and Kento in a game of re-capture the archer's prized blue-headband." She tugged at the band of fabric around her neck for emphasis.

Wildfire's bearer laughed, "Oh, and the bet is what exactly?"

"1000 yen says he can't catch me without help," she answered, glancing over her shoulder. She evaluated him a moment, noticed his energy levels were nearly normal but that his mood was one of slight depression. "You can join too if you want."

"I think I will," he pulled himself to his feet, and grabbed her arm before she could shoot off, "But, I want to add something to it."

"Oh?" the girl raised an eyebrow at him in confusion.

"If I catch you," Ryo grinned a little, "You and I are settling this 'we belong together' nonsense once and for all."

"What!" She cried in surprise, eyes going wide and nearly popping out of her skull. "Do you _mean_ to tell me…"

He grinned slyly at her and nodded, "I'd get going. Here they come."

She didn't need to be told twice, Elayne was gone the minute he let go of her arm. Of course, it might have been because he had just bugged her out a little. The Wildfire Ronin chuckled again; the look on her face had been priceless!

* * *

"Well then, put on your subarmor!" a female voice yelled in response to the complaining.

This is what Cye heard as he started to round the corner, as he was then grabbed and pushed back into the room serving as his.

The door was shut behind them, and Elayne leaned against it out of breath, but trying hard not to laugh, "You are now my hostage!"

He quirked an eyebrow at her, "What in bloody hell is going on?"

"A game of chase," She answered smiling, "1000 yen says Rowen can't catch me without help and get his headband back. So three of them have been after me for the past thirty minutes, and Nii-chan joined the hunt about ten minutes ago."

She now gave an evil grin, "Want to make it five Yoroiden against one poor defenseless me?"

Torrent's bearer snorted back a laugh, "You poor and defenseless? Hardly. All right then, one thing. Someone besides Rowen catches you; you have to go on a date with Ryo." He winked at her, only saying this to get her annoyed with him.

The look Elayne shot him was _anything_ but kind, and she sourly remarked, "He's already beat you to the punch there."

"What? You're kidding!" Cye cried in amazement, as a grin wove its way onto his face.

"And you can't tell anyone what I've just told you ever!" Elayne said hurriedly, before running back out the door.

The Ronin of Torrent let out a laugh, before joining his friends in their game...What could he say? They were technically adults, but even adults needed to act like kids every now and then. Considering what they had to deal with on a daily basis? They were more than entitled to goof off every now and then.

* * *

Kayura paused; she had established a line to the mortal realm and was informing the Elemental Senshi of what was currently going on. This was her second such communication with the women, having figured it would be necessary to keep in contact with them to keep them from worrying.

Of course today's report wasn't any different from the last one, though she could not know that this fact was soon to change.

"What's the matter?" Aurora asked in alarm.

A frown wove its way onto the Lady Ancient's face, "The Ronin…"

Elayne burst through the dinning room five extremely peeved Ronin Warriors hot on her heels. The girl took a bounding leap over the table, and caught the chandelier, hauling herself onto it, sticking out her tongue in triumph, "NYAH!"

The four normally cool and composed Ronin Seasonals were lost once more to a fit of uproarious laughter.

The five young men sent withering looks at their rivals, before glaring up at the girl with as much anger in their faces as possible.

"_I'M GOING TO KILL YOU_!" Rowen hollered angrily, "Give me back my headband, _NOW_!"

Kayura watched all of this in embarrassment, five grown men chasing a girl over a headband? What was the universe coming to? She thought about it a minute, and suddenly understood what Elayne was trying to do.

This didn't stop her from shouting, "I'm trying to talk here, take it outside!"

The five Ronin Warriors jumped back in surprise having overlooked the fact that Kayura was there. They exchanged looks noting that their target had refused to move from her spot.

"Do we have _to_?" Elayne playfully whined, knowing that Kayura was on to her little game at this point.

The woman returned this with a stern glare, to which the girl pouted at and said airily, "Fine, we're going."

Elayne candidly leapt off the chandelier and as the five made move to catch her, used the table as a balance beam and vaulted off of it, and onto the five Ronin.

This done she bounced off of them, and the minute her feet touched the concrete she was off like a beam of light knowing exactly how dead she would be once they caught up.

Kayura couldn't help herself, she started laughing at the pile-up in front of her; the Sailor Elementals were laughing as well and perhaps twice as loud.

The five young men got up, dusted themselves off, and put on their subarmor…Elayne was officially _dead_.

* * *

Another hour had past, and already the Ronins of Halo, Torrent, and Hardrock, had surrendered, however Ryo and Rowen would not be deterred.

The Secondary Guardian all too easily understood now what had kept them going during their time here, stubborn determination and sheer will power. When the armor of Wildfire would start to fail the armor of Strata would pick up the slack, and vice versa, even if their wearers didn't know what was going on.

The Seasonals had left Kayura to her conversation dying to see how this would turn out, while they didn't want to get involved in the mess at all, they couldn't help but enjoy watching the girl put the Ronin through their paces.

"Don't tell me you're tired!" Elayne protested as Rowen crumpled to the ground panting heavily.

"Will…kill…you," the Strata Ronin gritted out, "Must…get…headband back…need nap first."

The Lady Ancient had walked in to hear this statement, and started laughing with everyone else.

However the only one who had not let himself get thrown by this statement was the Ronin of Wildfire. True to his nature, he struck when least expected, and tackled the girl quickly pulling her into a body lock, crying, "Ha I win!"

"**_CHEATER_**!" Elayne bellowed out, kicking and hitting him, "Let me go!"

Ryo winced as she continued to struggle, "Ow! That hurts you know?"

"No I didn't," she tried to answer sweetly; "I'm hitting you because it's supposed to be relaxing. Now **_LET ME GO_** you idiot!"

"Nope," the Ronin of Wildfire cheerfully answered, "Not until you admit defeat."

The girl growled low in her throat, feeling tempted to strangle him, "Fine you win; Rowen can have his headband back."

"And?" Ryo grinned at her, waiting for her to continue. He had a Cheshire cat grin on his face, waiting for the admission to come. It just wasn't the one he had been expecting.

She made an indescribable noise in the back of her throat, "I'll plunge your sword into your heart tomorrow night."

"What?" Nine voices cried in alarm, shooting worried looks at the Ronin of Wildfire.

Ryo looked at her, face filled with confusion and pure shock unable to think of a comeback.

Elayne meanwhile had succumbed to her laughter, very much pleased with all the trouble she had caused. It had certainly got everyone's mind off where they were, and thus they would all be in better moods now. Which was definitely a good thing for her, otherwise she was sure the universe would be a Scout less.

* * *

Rowen now had his headband back, and was snoring softly. The Ronin had found they were too tired and exhausted to even bother and try getting up. Cye had been the first to lose himself to the world of slumber, Kento and Sage quickly following after him. The Strata Ronin had put up a brave fight, but quickly lost.

The Seasonals had also nodded off, having staid up rather late the night before and being in a place where most of the people were sleeping certainly didn't help them stay awake.

Ryo swore Rowen had been on a sugar high or something of the nature for the entire day, because never in his life had he seen the archer act that way. Then again, maybe Elayne had a way of bringing out a side of Rowen he wasn't too familiar with.

He looked down at her, after reluctantly relinquishing the headband she had continued to stay where she was. Whether she was enjoying such comfort, or just too tired to move he wasn't quite sure.

"Layne?" the Wildfire Ronin murmured softly.

"Still here," she cheerfully quipped. For someone who hadn't garnered an ounce of sleep since being in the Nether Realm she was doing quite well. She had her reasons for not moving away from the Wildfire Ronin; though it was mainly due to the fact she had sensed he was upset.

After all this time she was still a sucker, doing what she could to help them without their knowing it. If they knew they could turn her down, but if she did things like this they had a harder time figuring out she was meddling.

He chuckled, albeit sadly, "Good to know. I had wanted to talk to you, but then this came up and I didn't get the chance."

Ryo wasn't surprised when he felt her tense, appearing to already know where this was headed, he did his best to put her at ease, "Elayne, don't. I just…" He paused cleared his throat and his thoughts, "I'm sorry for what I did."

The Ronin Leader reached out and brushed a few stray locks of hair from her face, "I had no right to get angry in the first place, and I don't even remember doing what the others said I did. But I'm sorry for hurting you, I never meant to."

"It's fine Rekka-kun," she assured him, and when he opened his mouth to protest that it wasn't she cut him off with a look. "Ryo, it wasn't your fault, and I don't blame you."

"You can't tell me it didn't upset you. And also, Sage told me what happened," he murmured out. "You could have bled to death."

Elayne sighed through her nose, "He's overly dramatic. The wounds would've healed on their own just fine, I would have been fine. I _am_ fine. Sure what you said upset me, but I'm used to not being trusted or cared about. Don't wince it's not an accusation or me putting blame on you and the others. It's just the way things are Ryo, you have to understand that."

"I don't want to," his tone fully conveyed his thoughts on this. "And things shouldn't be like that, and you shouldn't accept them when they are like that. You don't answer to anyone anymore, remember?"

The girl let out a chuckle, "Yes, I know. I answer to my own conscious. Dumb idea on your part, Ryo." She grinned as she poked him in the ribs, watching as he jumped at the action, "I don't happen to have much of a conscious left."

"Ho ho, funny," the Ronin Leader groused as he rubbed at his now sore ribs. A frown crossed his face, before he quietly queried, "So…Are you and I okay then?"

Elayne shook her head at him and bit down a yawn before taking her hand and ruffling his hair, "Of course we are."

Ryo smiled at hearing this and then relaxed, letting his eyes close. Not more than a second later, he was sound asleep. The girl gave a sad shake of her head at him, only he would have felt so terribly guilty about something he couldn't even remember doing. That was just what made him who she was, she supposed…Not like she'd have had him any other way. And no she was never going to make such admissions aloud…At least, not during this century.


	19. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen:**

**Written: September 2006**

**Revised: April 28, 2008**

"Uh guys," Elayne called out an hour or so later, having left her comfortable spot next to Wildfire's bearer. "You _might_ want to get up."

She got no response to this statement as she stood looking over them, and then crossed her arms in front of her chest, "Fine, but you're all going to regret it."

The girl scanned the skies above her, and counted off in her head, _'Three, two, one.'_

Kento let out a grunt feeling a drop water land on his forehead he made a face, and decided to ignore it thinking the girl was playing jokes.

It was when he felt the drops come in a rapid succession that he sprang to life, as did those around him.

They all made a beeline for the palace, but it would do them no good as the rain was coming down in sheets by that point.

The girl merely walked behind them at a leisurely pace, shaking her head in bewilderment, "Hopeless, they're _absolutely_ hopeless."

They all skirted under the awning drenched through and through, and Kayura burst into giggles, "Cye you look like a drowned rat!"

He glared at her, sputtering out, "You're no better!"

The others snickered at this altercation, and glanced at one another laughing a bit harder. They all looked ridiculous!

"Hmm," Elayne titled her head and studied the men carefully, "A Ronin Elemental and Seasonal wet clothing contest. Kayura I can't believe you got them to agree to such a thing!"

Kayura burst into laughter, while the men proceeded to turn crimson, "Layne, you're terrible."

The girl shook her head, continuing to stay in the downpour, "It's taken you that long to come to this conclusion? I'm disappointed."

The Lady Ancient laughed harder at this, watching in amusement as Elayne finally walked into the sheltered area, eyeing the Seasonals with a critical eye.

The girl was silent for a few minutes, and then slung her arm around the Ancient's shoulders, "Kayura," She started to lead the woman along down the hall, "We need to discuss who we can fix the Seasonals up with."

The young woman giggled, "Oh yes, I agree! It's about time we did that, after all we've been playing Ronin Elemental guessing games for months! Time for new victims, er that is people."

_ 'They're going to kill us one of these days,'_ Elayne sent along the mental line to Kayura.

_ 'Maybe, but I'd like to think they'd miss us too much,'_ was her reply.

Elayne snorted back a laugh, _'They'd miss you undoubtedly; me? I am sure they would have liked not knowing to begin with.'_

* * *

Rowen frowned, looking at Anubis warily, "Are you sure we have to wear this?"

"Unless you'd prefer running around in the nude," the Spring Seasonal quipped, turning back to study the Ronin of Strata and Wildfire.

With the only outfits they had managed to grab still drying, and now having been soaked to the bone due to the torrential downpour, (which Cale said was yet another side effect of Talpa trying to merge worlds) left them in need of clean dry clothes. Unfortunately for them, they were now stuck wearing the oriental style robes.

That was something they had been avoiding ever since they got here, any time the Seasonals offered, they had politely refused, but now there was no way out of it.

"Uh no thanks," the archer quickly mumbled, fidgeting in the attire he was wearing.

Ryo let out a slight chuckle, "I'm sure Kayura would prefer it. I'm actually surprised at how she acts."

The Seasonal snorted back a laugh, giving a shake of his head, "She may be the last of the Ancient's clan, but that doesn't mean she can't and won't act like a normal mortal given the chance."

"Elayne," Rowen said simply, an air of confidence about him.

Both men looked at him in confusion, waiting for him to explain his reasoning further.

He grinned smugly, "Those two tend to feed off one another; they're too dangerous together."

"Hey," Kento poked his head into the room, still not sure how he liked being dressed up in this fashion, "Just be glad they haven't teamed up on you yet, blue-boy. Once they do, you're sunk."

Midnight-blue eyes narrowed in annoyance, "Shut-up hardhead."

"All right," Came an irritated British voice, as the owner tugged Kento back out of the room, "Shove it you lot."

The Ronin of Halo shook his head in amusement; leaning up against the wall on the opposite Anubis' chambers, the dark green robes he was wearing were courtesy of the Fall Seasonal.

As his four friends started to walk down the hall he followed, and then paused feeling a slight chill. He whipped his head around, to find nothing there at all. Yet, as he walked onward that feeling of unrest continued to persist him, so much that he picked up the pace.

The presence then left, and he slowed his pace, still shooting worried glances over his shoulder.

The Spring Seasonal eyed the Halo Ronin cryptically, knowing that perhaps the man's empathetic abilities had picked up on something. As Sage continued to look back over his shoulder Anubis was convinced that the Ronin had sensed something.

The man scowled, making note to inquire about this later. Anubis quickly turned his attention back to the front of him. The other Seasonals were having a light conversation, stopping once the others entered the room.

Kento quirked an eyebrow noting that the two girls were missing, he was prepared to make comment only to get the answer before he could.

Sekhmet rolled his eyes, "Kayura takes_ forever_ to go through her wardrobe."

"Oh brother," Rowen grumbled in annoyance, "We're gonna be here a _while_."

* * *

"_Please_?" Kayura pleaded with big doe eyes.

The girl gave a snort, "No, I'm not wearing any of your clothes, Kayura. No!"

The Lady Ancient had been trying to convince the girl for the past fifteen minutes to put on one of her fashionable Oriental robes.

"But why?" the woman whined in complaint. "They'd look good on you!"

Elayne rolled her eyes, "Because then you'll want to put make-up on me. I am **_not_** a doll, Kay."

The woman gave a huff, "Oh come on, Layne! Can't I have a little fun? Please?"

"No and that's final," she answered in a stern voice, upturning her chin for emphasis.

Kayura gave a sigh, trying a different tactic "You can't stay in those wet clothes though, and your other outfit is still drying."

The girl chuckled, "My clothes are perfectly dry thank you."

The Ancient frowned, stepped up and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder, her eyes widened in surprise, "How…how?"

"One of the perks of being a fire wielder, the armor of Wildfire can do the same exact thing," She grinned and ran a hand through her hair, "Unfortunately, it never gets my hair dry. I'll leave it down just to make you happy, okay?"

The woman beamed, chirping, "Can I put make-up on you _now_?"

"No," Elayne told her, quickly pulling the scrunchie out of her hair and grabbing one of the towels Kayura had provided. After trying to get her hair drier than it was, and brushing it out, she turned back around to face her friend.

Kayura blinked several times in surprise and confusion, "You…You look older!"

The girl chuckled again, "Now you know why I keep it up, makes me look the age I act," She nudged the woman, with a grin.

The Lady Ancient sighed once more, "Can't you at least let me put eyeliner on you?"

"I'll tell you what; I'll let you pick out my attire for the date Hot Shot thinks he's taking me on, deal?"

"Sure," Kayura answered, and then stopped dead, "WHAT? Repeat that **_very_** slowly!"

Elayne started laughing, and shook her head in amusement, "He wants to prove that either it will work, or won't work between us."

The woman was grinning, and slyly inquired, "Have you figured out which way he wants it?"

"I don't really care," the girl responded quickly, maybe a little too quickly, "It's going to go the way I want it to go, which isn't at all. And no telling anyone about this, understood? Or, I won't let you help."

"Okay, okay, I take a vow of silence," Kayura murmured, thinking of all the deviousness she could soon cause.

The girl bit back a groan, she should have never told Kayura about what Ryo was up to, or thought he was up to; that was certainly a grave error on her part. _'I've been full of those lately; heh must be a sign of old age.'_

* * *

Kayura entered the dining room, eyes lighting up at how the Ronin looked, "Not bad gentlemen, not bad at all."

The five young men let out a collective groan, and shifted uncomfortably in their seats, they should've known that comment was coming.

The Seasonals snickered under their breaths, but then went quiet upon seeing the young woman who entered after Kayura.

She studied them all carefully, and frowned slightly she then shrugged and preceded to her spot against the wall, "I still think they all look better shirtless."

The Ancient burst into giggles, "You would Layne! If I ever see them that way, I'll undoubtedly be inclined to agree with you."

She beamed at the Lady Ancient, and sank deeper into her chair; a slight frown came to her face, "What are you all staring at?"

The nine men abruptly stopped their staring, exchanged looks with one another, and then went back to staring at her in abject shock.

It was Dais that broke the stunned silence with a calm comment, "You look considerably different."

"She looks like an adult!" Rowen exclaimed sounding slightly exasperated.

Elayne let out a chuckle in amusement, "Well, if you remember about a warrior's peak of power; mine was originally when I was 16, and then the next lifetime it was 17. This time though, my power's risen yet again mainly because yours has, thus I've started to age normally again. But, this is probably as far as it'll go."

"Besides," she added as an afterthought. "You go the fact that nineteen seventy-seven is supposed to be my official year of birth this lifetime, I'll be twenty this year."

**_ "WHAT?" _**

* * *

The Ronin of Wildfire rolled his eyes, after his friends had been thoroughly lectured on the evils of forgetting their 'little sister's birthday' (once again), things had settled down considerably.

Though he wasn't really keeping his attention focused on the food, or the conversations going on around him. No, his eyes kept going back to her and the fact that, as Rowen so kindly pointed out, she was an adult, and she looked more like a woman now than before.

Ryo shook his head; he really needed to get a grip. Maybe being here for so long was starting to get to him too? No, that couldn't be it. He had not been affected like this when he staid here the last time.

He pushed his plate away, something was gnawing at the edge of his senses and that something was making him uptight like this.

"You okay Ryo?" The Ronin of Trust quickly inquired, taking note of how his friend looked.

The Ronin Leader merely offered a nod in response, eyes once more slowly moving back over to the girl who was now in deep conversation with the black tiger that served as her friend and companion.

Black Blaze then lay down at her feet, and emitted an enormous yawn, obviously done talking for the time being.

She smirked at the cat, and looked up catching Ryo's eye for the briefest of moments, before the Ronin hastily looked away which caused her to chuckle.

Wildfire's bearer knew he was blushing, and tried to shake it off; he really needed to get some rest tonight. His emotions were all over the place, and he knew it, and what was worse was he was sure Elayne knew it to.

_ 'Just my luck,'_ He gave an inward groan.

The girl chuckled again, teasing softly, _'Whatever is the matter Rekka?'_

_ 'Shut-up Uni,' _the Ronin leader shot back, _'You know exactly what's wrong!'_

_ 'Oh I know!'_ The chuckled deepened, _'I'm provoking you, aren't I? Poor, poor Rekka. I'm such a bitch aren't I?'_

He leveled a glare at her, but found it hard to maintain, even harder to sound convincing as he answered, _'Yes you are.'_

She laughed across the line at him, and he let out a growl in real life, glaring at her heatedly.

Everyone heard the commotion, but Sage was the first one to place what was going on, "Why don't you two take your fight outside?"

"Oh Nii-chan," Elayne wailed unhappily. "You're just no fun anymore!"

The Torrent Ronin rolled his sea-green eyes, "You need to learn to act your age."

"Which one?" She sharply retorted the comment having struck her the wrong way apparently. "The age you want, the one you expect, or my real one? Be a bit more specific than that, Shin."

"Enough!" Kayura bellowed before the heated arguing could begin, she turned sharp eyes to the Ronin signifying to back off, and then turned and gave a look to Elayne.

The girl snarled softly, and crossed her arms in front of her chest, closing her eyes and tuning the world around her out. Not willing to deal with it at this point in time.

Sage watched all of this with a severe frown on his face, but kept the thoughts to himself for right this moment. It was something he would have to worry about later.

* * *

_A/N: Mhm long overdue update I know. I've had many pleas, so here's a chunk of chapters for you. Still haven't done anything to Book 5; sry._


	20. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen**

**Written: September 2006**

**Revised: April 28, 2008**

The Ronin of Strata was frowning as he walked next to the bearer of Halo, both were in silent contemplation at what had occurred over the past noon meal. It was kind of hard to miss the quick change in attitude, but what to make of it was another story.

"All right, I'll play the fool," Hardrock's bearer finally announced not thrilled with his friends staggering silence. "What the _hell_ was that all about?"

The Secondary Guardian had been silent after Kayura had sent her the warning look, not bothering to eat or even remotely take part in the discussion that had come afterwards. In fact she had left in the middle of it without a word, they had only noticed when they glanced over to the wall and she was gone.

A thoughtful frown tugged at the corner's of Rowen's mouth, as he explained a few of the possibilities out loud, "She's exceedingly agitated. She's upset that we've been here so long when this place is full of so many memories for us, and she's even angrier that she can't figure out what is going on."

"And, I don't think she's slept or even ate since we got here," Cye added in with a frown. "She's starting to worry me."

"She's not the only one I'm worried about. We all need to be on guard," the Halo Ronin murmured softly, "I felt an evil presence before, I think it will make a move and soon."

Ryo gave a nod, he trusted his friends empathic abilities never once had they been off, "Agreed."

The Ronin of Trust had been quiet, and then suddenly inquired, "Question, has anyone else had dreams of their past stay here?"

"Yeah," came the mumbled agreement, and then each Ronin looked at the other.

The Hardrock Ronin let out an anguished sigh, "And I'm guessing, I'm not the only one that heard Elayne."

Everyone responded quite easily to this one, "No, you're not."

"Okay, now I really don't get it," Rowen began uncertainly.

Dais let out a chuckle, materializing out of the shadows in front of them, "It's good that you know so much about your other guardian. Especially considering she lived among you all for so long."

"Not like the Ancient, who was oh-so informative," Cye sarcastically retorted.

Kento was quick to add in, "Besides mei mei and Universe were different, and while the personalities might have melded- Well, there's stuff about Universe that is now there, that wasn't before."

The Summer Seasonal chuckled again, "Good points."

"What do you want that makes it necessary to spy on us?" The Strata Ronin demanded, slightly irked.

"Calm down Rowen," the white-haired man leaned back against the wall, "I patrol this hall at this time, daily. Your conversation amused me though, so I'd thought I'd interrupt."

"Go on, we're listening," Ryo quickly interjected, sending the blue-haired archer a warning glance. He knew when Dais wanted to drop information, it was something that Rajura had done. He had only done it went it suited, or amused him.

The Seasonal looked up, "Her only reason for coming here was to keep an eye on you five. She was concerned that the past events might replay themselves and open up tender wounds. The Lady of the Universe happens to be more than a physical healer, but that of a…"

"Mental one," Sage finished quietly, as he shifted his weight, a frown on his face, "I thought that might be why she came, but wasn't sure."

"How do you know?" Rowen asked his best friend in confusion.

The Halo Ronin chuckled, "I am well aware of what she did the last time. And, I know her. If she can do something, she will regardless of what happens to her own person."

"Too true," Ryo mumbled in agreement.

* * *

'_One discussion down,'_ the Halo Ronin thought to himself, as he made the trek back to the room serving as his.

They had probably rambled on for another half-hour with the Summer Seasonal, before deciding it was time to call it a day. Oh sure the late evening meal might still be attended by them later that day, but other than that they were pretty much done.

Elayne had been successful in getting them preoccupied, as well as putting them through their paces and making sure their reaction times were still all right. The exercise and distraction had been recognized for what they were by all five of them immediately, but they had still taken the opportunity she had presented.

At this point, the five would love to try and solve their problems right that minute. But without anything to go on, and without a way to get past the spell…They couldn't act. They had all learned to let the enemy make the first move, that way their actions in retaliation would be justified. But they couldn't find an enemy, or a reason, at this point.

Sage sighed, and then immediately froze, once more detecting that presence of evil. He whirled around, growling, "Who's there?"

His eyes shifted back and forth across the dark corridor, as he settled into a defensive stance.

A light chuckling caught his attention, and someone muttered, "Did you alert the other's Halo? Because even if you did, it won't help you now."

All Sage was entitled to hear next was an evil cackle, and the ability to feel the presence behind him before his world went black.

* * *

Anubis watched the young girl pace the room, her agitation having started to rise the minute the Ronin had left the room some twenty minutes ago. She had gone and then come back, without saying much of anything.

Kayura waited till the Ronin left, and then had tried to coax an answer as to why she was so snappish. The Secondary Guardian had angrily responded that something was wrong. Then she had proceeded to start pacing.

Now Spring's bearer was stuck trying to focus on what Cale was trying to talk about, but more focused on what she was doing, namely pacing a hole in the floor.

He turned his head back to Cale, noting that the older man's patience with him was starting to thin. However, the Seasonal of Spring watched in surprise as his friend's kanji violently flared, and felt his own painfully throb.

Kayura looked at them nervously, and then shot a glance to Elayne, her eyes widening in horror.

The girl was on her knees, panting heavily, as the crystal chimed around her neck almost as though it were panicking.

"What's going on?" Sekhmet asked in alarm, helping the girl up.

She gritted her teeth together, having been muttering swearwords under her breath, "Sage…He's been attacked."

They looked at one another in alarm and rushed out of the dining hall, Sekhmet was prepared to help the girl further, but she teleported out of the room leaving him to shake his head and follow after his friends.

* * *

Rowen had been the one to find the unconscious swordsman, bleeding and bruised. Strata's room being the closest put him in the position to get there the fastest, but being Sage's best friend made him aware of what happened first.

The others had arrived shortly after, and now the Seasonals came along, all the while the blue-haired archer was thinking frantically of anything he could do, or try and do to help his friend.

Sage's breathing was shallow, sweat-poured from his brow, and it was obvious that he was in a lot of pain. The one thing Rowen couldn't understand was how this could've happened, how had the Halo Ronin been caught unaware?

Elayne appeared, startling them all slightly, she put her hands against the struggling Ronin's chest, and closed her eyes the crystal seemed to hesitate a minute and then a blinding light swept through the area.

The girl kept her breathing steady, and then placed her palm on his forehead, murmuring in a soft voice, "Sage? Sage, can you hear me?"

A soft moan escaped his lips, as he tried to focus on his surroundings but things were too blurry.

"What…" He managed to croak out.

The girl swore softly, and closed her eyes again trying to channel more of her energy over to him, once more the crystal hesitated and she let out what sounded like a hiss then it responded.

The Halo Ronin felt his strength return, and once more opened his eyes, blinking rapidly to clear his vision, murmuring, "Thanks."

"Can you move at all?" She queried, waiting for him to respond before removing her hand.

The blond swordsman gave a curt nod, and Rowen helped him to his feet, and the girl slowly got up as well.

"Sage, what happened?" Ryo quietly asked.

The swordsman frowned, "Whatever it was, came up behind me. He told me that even if I had alerted anyone that he was making his moves, it wasn't going to help me. That's all I remember."

"Do you know who it was?" Dais quickly inquired, though he had a hunch.

Sage thought it over for a minute, "It was a spirit; at least I think it was."

Elayne was frowning a spirit? But the Minlin weren't even around, and that meant it was was… "Kayura! Who's in charge of the remaining Ankoku Priests now that Badamon is gone?"

Dais looked at her sharply, there was no way she would know of the Nether Spirits real name without actually having been there in the past and further than what she had shown the Seasonals. It just wasn't possible, was it?

The Lady Ancient hesitated a moment, "Shinshou, why?"

Elayne's violet eyes narrowed into a hateful glare, and she whirled on her heel and stalked off down the hall, "I should have _known._"

Everyone looked after her in alarm, and it didn't take Ryo more than a second to be up after her. He remembered Shinshou and knew exactly how ugly this was going to get. He didn't feel she should be alone to deal with him.

* * *

It didn't matter, she didn't _care_. Her patience was just about shot at this point, making her temper uncontrollable. The ten could learn about the fact the only time she had been here before was as an unwanted guest or in order to get them out of harm's way.

But now she knew who was causing this, and she wasn't going to back down. No way, absolutely _no_ way. She walked down the hall making a sharp right, then a left, and another right and picked up the pace.

The Cimmerian Crystal hummed around her neck, Simoria not willing to speak up, knowing she could be detected in this place. The warning was there though, and Elayne ignored it too.

The Secondary Guardian's senses were on fire, the closer she got to the pit the more she wished she had just summoned him out, but no this required a direct confrontation without any witnesses. Lest the fool of a spirit try something extraordinarily more stupid than what he had already done.

She came to a halt now, just outside the pit and she let out a low growl, snapping, "Shinshou!"

A light eerie chuckling caused her eyes to narrow, and the crystal chimed detecting that her anger was close to flaring.

"Ah Lady Universe," came the greeting. She recognized his robes, and his annoying voice. "Tell me my dear what can I do for you?"

The crystal hummed, and dark flames engulfed the girl's form, leaving the Secondary Guardian, and she was seething.

"Don't play coy with me!" She snarled out angrily, "What are you up to you leech?"

Shinshou chuckled, "My dear lady, perhaps you are overreacting? I do not know what you are talking about."

"Liar," she hissed taking a step towards him, "What are you playing at, I demand an answer!"

He growled in his throat at her, as Ambassador she could play that card and find out anything and everything she wanted_. 'Curse her,'_ the spirit thought angrily, _'Never could mind her own business.'_

He steeled himself for the repercussions as he said calmly, "I still do not understand what it is you are asking."

Sailor Universe's eyes narrowed and it seemed to Ryo that something in her had snapped. Her one hand rested around the spirit's throat, and she pinned him against the wall.

Shinshou tried hard not to choke, while he may be spirit in some respects, even if he was completely a spirit the blasted Scout could still do him harm, and quite a bit at that.

"I swear," Universe hissed out, eyes filled with flame, "Harm them any further, I **_will_** kill you this time. There's no Talpa or Badamon around for you to hide behind, or destroy you for me due to your failures. Am I clear?"

"Y…Yes," the Nether Spirit answered angrily.

She let him go, and he gave an eerie chuckle, "Always were defensive of Halo, weren't you?"

Universe snarled, eyes filled with hatred, "Its you, you son of a bitch! You're the one messing with the rips." She tossed a beam of light at him, but it was too late he was already gone.

She forced herself to calm down, will away her power and got her breathing back under control. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Ryo placed his hand on her shoulder.

"You okay?" the concern in his voice wasn't hard to miss.

Elayne gave a nod, "I don't know what the hell I was thinking. I should have thought of it sooner, I just didn't expect him to be alive for this lifetime."

"Neither did I," the Ronin of Wildfire admitted. "Do you think you can get us past the block?"

"I can try," the girl mumbled out.

"All I'm asking, let's get back to the others and get a move on," the Ronin Leader said, as he started back in that direction leaving her to follow. The two of them took mere minutes to get back to the others.

"Well?" Anubis asked expectantly.

Ryo was quick to explain, "Shinshou has been allies with Akemliek in the past. He found the rip, and he's the one that has been keeping us out, and delaying us wherever he could. Dais and Cale must've gotten too close to figuring out how to undo the spell keeping us out of the southeast corridor. So he struck out at one of us in retaliation."

"Hoping most likely to buy himself more time," Sekhmet stroked his chin in thought. "It just backfired. He must've known that Universe would've figured him out."

Kento's eyes went wide as a sudden thought struck him, "That's why Thanos went through such trouble to make sure we had doubts about your involvement," He was looking at Elayne, "In this life. With any of us doubting you, your…"

"Barely usable power as it was, would be cut in half yes," she gave a nod. "It was cut in half, I have just managed to regain enough to pick up on things only recently."

"What's the game plan, he knows we are on to him," Kayura murmured out.

The Ronin Leader spoke again, "We're getting past that corridor, now." His eyes landed on the swordsman, "Sage, you…"

The blond gave a vigorous shake of his head, "No, it won't do us any good to be split up. I'm fine; we came here to solve a problem, you're not leaving me out of this."

Wildfire's bearer let out a groan, "All right, you win."

The girl rolled her eyes, quickly separating the stone around her neck into two once more, she tossed the Jewel of Life at the Halo Ronin and he caught it.

"Put it on, it'll keep you from collapsing," She said not sounding too pleased, "You managed to lose a good portion of your mental and physical energy, and I don't think I restored enough of it."

Sage did as he was told, and the ten warriors exchanged nervous glances with one another before reluctantly making their way to the southeast section of the palace. None of them could have foreseen what lay ahead.


	21. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty**

**Written: October 2006**

**Edited: April 29, 2008**

Rowen swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat, as he nervously scanned the halls. They had made it to the corridor finally, and begun to walk down it. At the pace they were going, it could have been equaled with crawling.

As the Ronin of Strata continued his trek, the yelling that had before come to his ears came again, and it got louder with each step he took. What startled him was the fact that for some odd reason he _knew_ it was from his memory. A part that had become buried for some reason, and a reason he wasn't sure he could begin to guess at.

The yelling changed, and shattering glass reached his ears next, and he froze completely. The frantic voices he heard now, he recognized immediately. He was reluctant to move forward, to even breathe and had he not been trapped in his own memory he might've realized that the others were suffering from the same thing.

All of a sudden, it ended as quickly as it had started up. Once his vision cleared Rowen was surprised to see Elayne standing in front of them, her back to them. In front of her was a small shield, only visible because it was tied directly to the crystal by some miniscule amount of darkened light.

"Everybody okay?" the girl queried, turning to glance at them over her shoulder.

Ryo rubbed at his forehead, and glanced at his teammates who all nodded, "We're fine."

"Stay behind me," she said before turning back to face the front. "Shinshou's spell is triggering locked memories. I won't read into why right now, all I know is that the crystal can offer you limited protection. We've an hour, hour-and-a-half at most, before the shield it's providing fails."

"Do I even want to know how you figured it out?" Sekhmet queried, his voice held a light note of concern to it.

"Shinshou was thinking about it, when I confronted him," she answered calmly as she started to walk down the hall. "His mind was poorly guarded, only because he did not expect me to be in enough strength to catch on to him."

Any further discussion ended as the warriors turned their attention to the unpleasant walk ahead of them.

* * *

Cye paused detecting an underlying presence of negative energy, and tensed whipping his head to his right trying to see if he could locate it. His empathetic abilities were not anywhere as well developed as Sage's, but they were more than what most of the others had.

The Ronin of Torrent could find nothing though, and a glance to the swordsman, who merely shook his head signified the blond couldn't sense anything either.

Cye frowned, the further down this corridor they went; the more negative the energy and the more sorrow and misery he could feel. He was certain these negative emotions had been lingering in this hall for a long time, coupled with that of another emotion which he could not identify.

Sage was able to though, and sent along the simple message of, _'Pain.'_

Dais seemed upset over being in this corridor as well; he continually looked around him his one good eye never settling on a spot for more than a minute.

The Seasonal of Summer had been in Talpa's employ, not the longest but he knew all too well of the rumors concerning the older parts of the palace, what they had been used for. Plus, his former life as an assassin made him curious and by nature he wanted to know everything he could about anything, so he knew where they were now and was not that happy about it.

Anubis watched the man out of the corner of his eyes, inquiring, "Something wrong Dais?"

The Summer Seasonal nearly jumped out of his skin, but quickly made his face neutral, "No."

"You're lying," Sekhmet tartly stated, "You know something about this place that we don't, tell us."

Dais gave the man a glare, "I know nothing, except for rumors which can neither be proven true or false."

"Then tell us these rumors then," Cale snapped in annoyance, "We can never be too careful."

The white-haired man scoffed, "You always were overly cautious, Cale."

"Oh will the four of you, ever shut your big-loud mouths?" Kayura demanded in aggravation, "The Ronin don't want to listen to you argue like infants, I know I don't!"

"What rumors do you know of, Dais?" Ryo queried, ignoring the banter taking place. Oh Wildfire's bearer had a hunch or two, but he wasn't sure if this part of the palace had been used in the same was as it had in the past.

The man hesitated, eye having quickly shot to his right, before he answered slowly, "Only a few, the main rumors are that the…" He trailed off, eye focusing on the wall in front of them.

"It's a dead end?" Cye murmured in confusion, "That doesn't make sense."

Kayura frowned and approached it cautiously, she then tapped it with her hand, and frowned, "It's hollow. This isn't a real wall, I mean it isn't part of the original palace, it has to be fifty years-old at least."

Sekhmet eyed it with a grin, "Shall I do the honors? Or does someone else want them?"

Kayura rolled her eyes, stepped to the side and said, "Be my guest."

All it took was one good kick from the man before the wall caved completely.

"Wasn't a very strong wall," the Fall Seasonal now frowned, "They put it up hastily then."

"I wonder why?" Anubis murmured, and felt a sudden chill crawl down his spine, he turned to the Summer Seasonal, "Dais, you were going to explain what you had heard; I'd do it, before we continue any further."

The white-haired man seemed agitated, and it was plain to see that he was very tense, "Rumor has it that the old dungeons were down this way. But the pain and sorrow left lingering in the walls, made it unbearable for any but the Nether Spirits to travel down it. Talpa had the corridor sealed off, finding the older methods did not work as well as the newer ones."

Kento shuddered remembering all too well the torture he had endured, and if that had been the newer, he would have hated to endure the older.

"Do I dare ask, what was wrong with the older methods?" The Strata Ronin hesitantly inquired.

Dais frowned, tried to speak and thought better of it; no he wasn't even going to go there. He continued walking on with the others, but never once stopped scanning for movement.

"The victims rarely survived," Elayne answered, for the most part she had been quiet during this trip down the long, never ending corridor, only speaking when she had to.

Cye winced at her revelation, "Poor souls."

"You know of these 'rumors' as well?" Cale asked her sharply.

She scoffed at him, "You're forgetting something very important my beloved Winter Seasonal I've been here before. On more occasions than I'd like to mention or recall."

He went silent, thinking of a retort but finding none to get her with.

Kayura frowned ever so slightly; she was starting to think that the girl hadn't heard the rumors at all, but in fact had first hand knowledge instead.

Ryo had kept his eyes straight in front of him for the entire time, ever since Elayne had thrown up the shield; he had refused to take his eyes off her. The further they went down the corridor, he could see that her skin-tone had become paler and paler; obviously the shield didn't protect her from the mental-attacks like it was doing for them.

Now, another wall came into view, and he came to a complete stop, his armor telling him not to move another step.

The Hardrock Ronin walked up to the wall, fully prepared to deal with the obstacle.

"No Kento, get back!"

He abruptly stopped moving a cast a look at Elayne, not failing to note the look on her face and not missing the panic that had been in her voice. Yet, she did nothing to explain herself as she walked past him, halting at the wall.

"No one move an inch," her tone was stern, yet at the same time strained.

Rowen wanted to know where this girl got off at, giving orders as though they were too naïve to know how to handle themselves. The Ronin immediately berated himself, he knew better than that; it was obvious Elayne could sense things about this place that they could not.

She let out a nervous breath, muttering to herself in a low tone, "Now where is it?"

Her violet eyes scanned the walls, and the harder she looked the more she saw, until she finally found what she was looking for. She took her left hand, pushed on the stone there, then the one above her head, and then the one on her right.

The girl then quickly leapt back, just as spikes sprung up from the floor that would have skewered them all as they would have tried to enter the door that had appeared upon their approach.

"Ken…Kento," Cye began quietly, eyes widened in horror, "You would've been…"

"A Hardrock shish kabob ya," he gave a nod of his ash-purple head in agreement.

Elayne was silent as she checked the energy level of the area, before walking forward, "Come on, and watch your step while you're at it."

Those that had brushed off this warning, found themselves on their knees unprepared for the sudden drop off.

* * *

Elayne rolled her eyes having heard the collective thud from behind her, and turned around hauling Anubis to his feet.

"An abrupt drop," the Spring Seasonal remarked somewhat sheepishly.

Rowen nodded in agreement rubbing his now sore knee, hoping that it wouldn't turn black and blue on him, "You're not joking."

Ryo looked up at the door, which was two to three feet above them, "Ya, the other floor just ends there. That's more than just a little unusual."

"Talpa was a nutter," Kayura dismissively stated, as it more or less explained everything.

"Guess we'll be jumping out," Sekhmet mumbled out.

The girl snorted at the way the comment was stated, and turned to the front again a shiver going down her spine.

Her eyes flickered around the dimly lit room nervously, as though she were expecting to be attacked at any moment.

"There are shackles all over the walls," Cale remarked in distaste.

The Ronin of Halo looked pale and as though he was going to be sick. He could see the table not too far ahead of them, where heavy bindings were laid and it was apparent that the iron was heated while the victim was being tortured.

What made it all the worse, was the fact he could all too easily detect the pain and agony left behind as well as the screams of those who had suffered here. He wasn't the only one not taking it well. Being here only a few minutes now, had managed to visibly upset Kayura.

Undoubtedly her being part of the Ancient's clan made her vulnerable to these emotions that had imprinted themselves into the walls of this part of the palace.

She was paler than normal as well, and her breathing had abruptly gone short. All in all she was very uneasy.

Dais put an arm around the young woman, "Calm yourself, we'll try to get through here and quickly."

She could only give a nod of her head in response, involuntarily shuddering as a chill swept through her.

"We need to move on," Anubis said gravely, "Lest any tortured souls linger here and try to harm us."

"I…" Sage began, as Rowen helped him to his feet, "Can't sense any, or see any either."

"You won't," the Secondary Guardian responded quietly, "There aren't any left. I tended to the matter long ago. They rest now."

She could sense their alarm, and chuckled at it, "Oh please, I didn't become such an agile mover, and good fighter without experience. Why else do you think over half my synapses are shot? I've endured enough pain and torture, more than any of you could even dream about, so let's not start on the 'oh I'm sorry' lines; besides I'm the one who signed on for this anyway."

"That doesn't make it,…" Cye began with a frown.

"What, 'all right'? Nothing will ever make it 'okay' Shin, and nothing will erase what has happened, but that's not why we're here. We are here to throw a rather large wrench in Shinshou's plan, now let's go before the shield falls apart," the girl said sternly.

The Ronin of Wildfire shot Torrent a glare that said not to push the matter, knowing full well that the other man would do so, and stepped forward now in sub-armor.

The others followed his lead, quickly calling up their powers as to offer them a bit more protection, physical as well as mental.

This allowed the girl to lower how much energy she was using for the mental shield, and gave her a small reprieve, just enough to keep her walking forward. Not more than five minutes later she halted, her violet eyes snapping immediately to her left.

* * *

The Ronin of Strength studied the wall, noting how the air directly in front of it seemed to be rippling like water; he could sense an odd amount of energy coming from it, and inquired, "So this is it then?"

Cale nodded avidly, "Yes, it's a cusalta."

"Great, now how do we close it?" Strata's bearer inquired, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Kayura gave a snort and ridiculed him, "Stop being so pissy Rowen."

"He's just hurt that you haven't had any alone time," Cye jibbed, chortling when the archer glared at him. The Ronin of Water quickly stepped away from the Lady Ancient evading her punch to his shoulder that might have occurred.

"Save it you guys," the Wildfire Ronin told them, before looking to the four Seasonals. Not surprising the other Elemental Ronin and Kayura did the same. For an answer they received shrugs in response.

"You have got to be kidding," Sage's tone clearly signified he was _not_ impressed, "You mean to tell me that you dragged _us_ all the way out here, and don't know how to _seal_ this thing?"

"We didn't expect to actually find one!" The Fall Seasonal protested, "Whenever they occurred before Talpa had the Spirits seal them."

"Just shut up you guys," Elayne said tartly, rubbing the point in between her temples failing to fight off the migraine that was creeping up on her.

Ryo put a hand on her shoulder, "You okay?"

She shook her head, "No, I can't hold this shield for too much longer, I can give you another twenty minutes, but that's it. As far as closing it goes, close your eyes, clear your thoughts and focus on the task at hand."

The girl took a step or two away from the Wildfire Ronin, before the dark flames lapped at her form quickly overtaking her, leaving the Scout in her place.

"Your powers will be enough to close it, and I'll keep watch out here to make sure Shinshou doesn't pull anything," Universe said in a calm tone. "I know he will though. Do what you can to start to make it close, and if you can't do anymore than that, I'll seal it."

The Ronin Leader avidly shook his head, "No way, you don't have the kind of power to pull it off without harming yourself more than you already have. We'll get it closed just keep the ghost off our cases." He turned his attention to the others, "Like she said, clear your thoughts, focus, and let's get this damn thing shut so we can leave."

Kayura gave a snort at hearing this, but withdrew her weapons, planning to keep watch with Universe, to make sure nothing happened. Unfortunately, it was already too late.


	22. Chapter 21

** Chapter Twenty-One**

**Written: October 2006**

**Revised: April 29, 2008**

_'Clear my thoughts? Ya right,' _Kento thought in annoyance, but closed his eyes and tried to follow the instructions that had been given.

It took them all a few minutes to calm down and try to concentrate. It was anything but easy, the fact they were in this place alone was enough to break it. Yet somehow, they managed to pull it off.

The rift gave an apparent objection to being closed, flashing almost completely wide open and striking out…But it was not a second later that it shrank back from the power being pressed at it.

The tear started to mend itself, first the open rift started to weaken, and then the edges started folding in over top of the hole. That was when the trouble started.

Universe tensed and then delivered a round-house kick to a Raikken that had suddenly appeared into the room. Like they had suspected, Thanos and Akemliek had been in on this from the beginning. The only question that now plagued her mind was why?

"I hate it when we have company," the Senshi groused to Kayura, only to get no response. "Kayura?"

The Scout turned her head, eyes going wide at seeing that Kayura was standing there transfixed and that the nine Ronin were pretty much in the same state. It hit her hard, and knocked the wind out of her lungs. Shinshou had _wanted_ them here to close the rift! The warrior lunged herself forward.

"Blast it," she gritted her teeth together, and took care of the Raikken that had somehow swarmed into the room. Yet, she failed to keep her senses focused on what was going on behind her. Shinshou took the opportunity, and slammed her in the back with a beam of dark energy.

She winced, bracing herself against the table and flipping over top of it, landing on her feet to send a death-glare at the spirit.

He let out a chuckle, "Well, I was beginning to think you wouldn't make it down here at all."

"You wanted them here to close the rift, but why go through such trouble?" Universe kept her tone calm and ignored the dull throbbing that was coming from her back.

"Because they benefit no one being the way they are," the Nether Spirit remarked in a smug tone. "I can hand them over to the _Nysantic_, after the spell has finished."

"It'll be over my dead body," the Secondary Guardian snarled at him, eyes sparking to life, energy already in her palm.

His leer widened, as he muttered something, and pain shot through her body, causing her to loose her balance. Shinshou then managed to hit her with another energy beam which threw her against the wall.

She crumpled to the floor with a muffled thud, and let out a low groan, trying to keep conscious. It was hard for her though the pain that raced through her from the mental lines was putting pressure on her own. Spell, what spell? The spell he'd been trying to use all along was one…Oh hell first the armors, then the enemy?

"You…" She growled out, trying to pull herself to her feet, "Leave them and their memories alone!"

Shinshou gave a hollow-sounding laugh, his evil smile prominent on his face, "You figured it out a little too late, Lady Universe. Those memories will keep them trapped and frozen like they are until Thanos gets here to deliver them to the _Nysantic_."

* * *

Sekhmet remembered his life before Talpa quite well. For the most part the demon emperor had kept those serving under him without knowledge of the lives they had before. They only remember joining him, and nothing past that. Yet, the minute he had been defeated his hold on that had vanished as well. Within the first few weeks of being free from him, the memories had come most often as dreams…And few had been relatively pleasant. Revenge had driven him to join Talpa, and once he had gotten his pure sweet revenge he remained servant to an evil emperor lord for over four centuries.

But, by this point he remembered his family quite well and everything about it in addition to that. The Yamanouchi had been proud, held in rather high-regard. His father had been a well noted samurai, his mother a noble woman whom had many children.

The Fall Seasonal had two older brothers, one older sister, three younger brothers, and one younger sister. Out of all of them, he had been the only one in the family to show 'demon' traits. His father had been unnecessarily harsh with him, disgusted with having a demon son…His mother treated him little better, and for the most part his siblings wanted nothing to do with him. They were _afraid_ of him…All accept for the youngest of the Yamanouchi children, his sister Yuri.

She had idolized him and practically worshipped the ground he walked on. In a household that happened to care little about your existence, she had been a comfort to him.

He remembered plenty of things, but _this_, what he was seeing right now? He did not remember, did not recall it at all.

"Naotoki," his father said in a calm tone as he looked over the young seventeen-year-old. "You have shown great promise in your latest training sessions. As such it has come time for you to set out on your first mission. I take it you are prepared?"

"Yes Chichue," the young man was bowed low, awaiting further instruction.

The slightly graying and balding man had sharp brown eyes and his piercing gaze continued to bear down on the boy, or so it would seem to an onlooker…Which is the way it appeared to Sekhmet now.

"You will be joining the forces of a neighboring province and give them aide when they need it," the man continued tone crisp. "Distinguish yourself in your efforts Naotoki, and I may be willing to overlook your status."

Sekhmet let out a low growl at hearing these words now, oh if he had been this person back then he would have let that old man have it. Especially since it was from his line that Sekhmet's coloring came from. Yet the teenager murmured his thanks and excused himself.

"Virtue is already showing itself," Sekhmet dryly remarked as the memory followed the path he had once traveled. "Tei, obedience to ones elders; very amusing, _not_."

"**_Nao-kun_**!" Came a squeal as a small girl with black-hair and covered in a lilac robe charged him, throwing her tiny arms around him. "I've been looking all over for you!"

"Yuri," Sekhmet whispered blinking, watching as his younger self laughed, and gently set the girl down. "Yuri-chan! You shouldn't run through the halls so fast, you might trip and fall."

"And then Kaa-san would fret," the nine-year-old finished in a bored tone. Then beamed a smile at her cherished older brother, "Onii-chan! I heard from Oneesan that you were leaving. Is this true?"

The boy quirked an eyebrow obviously thinking the same as Sekhmet was now, everyone had known but him? "Yes it is Yuri, I expect I will be leaving-"

"The moment my horse has been quenched of his thirst," a voice calmly supplied…But it was the person it belonged to that left Sekhmet dumbfounded.

Her hair was black, and her eyes were almost completely hazel; yet she looked the same back then as she did now. She offered the teenager a soft smile, "Greetings Naotoki-kun, it has been quite a few years since I last saw you. I hope that you are well?"

"What?" Sekhmet demanded shock now going to confusion. "She'd been around before that?"

"Oh, An-san!" Naotoki was quick to place her. "When chichue-tachi returned from that harrowing trip…You guided them back onto the path. He requested you stay for several days. I remember. I have been well, and you?"

She seemed amused, her long hair was tied up neatly into a bun, and the clothing she wore would have been considered scandalous anywhere…Almost ninja attire. But his father had always cared little for what a woman looked like if she could hold her worth.

Sekhmet remembered that all too well, yet he was still surprised to know that she was there, had been involved in the past life. Yet, as he thought about it he should not have been surprised. Universe had meddled in each of the Ronin's lives, why not the Seasonals too?

"Oh I could be better," she admitted shaking her head. "But, another story for another day; I shall see you outside Naotoki-kun. Ah Yuri-chan, you got bigger," she told the little girl having knelt down to place a hand on her forehead, "I am glad. Keep out of trouble little one." She then got up and walked down the hall, most likely to speak with his father.

Sekhmet's stomach uneasily churned, as he came to a realization. This was the battle, or assignment he'd gone off too right before returning home to find that his village had been decimated. His entire family having been killed off while he was away…But why had he not remember An being there?

A scowl crossed his face, it was possible that with all the memories Talpa erased, and with as often as he had felt the need to do it…That some things had become lost completely. The problem that bothered him now, was why was this coming up right that minute?

It just didn't make any sense…And as the memories continued to play through, he was left standing there in bewilderment.

* * *

The Ronin of Trust did the best he could to ignore what was transpiring before his eyes. This was what he had been catching glimpses of while they were walking down the corridor, and now he was seeing all of it.

It had been a clear and calm day, and his father had decided to take him out for a trip on the yacht, an hour to two at the most. The voyage had been quite uneventful, but all of a sudden the sky went dark.

The burning gasoline caught his attention quickly, and his father's voice yelling, "Shin get out of here!"

He saw himself, at the age of nine or ten perhaps, running from out of the bunker, a figure on his heels, one which he recognized now, and his heart bottomed out…Raikken.

As a child he was too scared to fight, and his father couldn't handle them all alone.

"Shin!" The man cried out again, seeing the Raikken advance on his son.

Cye watched in horror too, closing his eyes expecting the blow to come, only to hear a familiar voice angrily holler, "Get away from him!"

The Raikken whirled around, and Cye opened his eyes, to his shock the Sailor of the Universe glaring heatedly at the monster. In a blinding flash of light, the Raikken had been turned into dust.

She knelt down to him, placing a hand on his shoulder, "You okay, little one?"

The young boy could only nod, and watched as she quickly took care of the others, frantically calling out, "Mouri-san? Mouri-san, are you all right?"

His father came out of the bunker a pained expression on his face, as he held onto his side, "So it's true then, you exist."

She gave a wry smile, placing a hand on the wound, it vanished, "Heck of a way to find out, ne?"

He laughed a little, and quickly scooped up his son, "You all right?"

"Y…Yes," was all the child could squeak out, still eyeing the Sailor in complete bewilderment.

She chuckled at this, a frown soon capturing her features as she studied the clouds, they were increasing and thickening, "Mouri-san! We have to leave, there are more coming."

As the words escaped from her lips, more soldiers appeared and she leapt in the line of fire so to speak, fighting them off.

She hissed as one planted it's spearhead into her left shoulder; she quickly whirled around and destroyed it, snapping the weapon in half leaving the blade embedded into her shoulder.

"Mouri-san please!" the Scout pleaded, "I can't hold them forever."

The elder Mouri looked to his son and smiled, putting the young boy down, "Take Shin and go."

"What!" She gave an audibly gasp, "Are you insane? You go, and I'll…"

"Consider it an order Lady Universe," Cye's father snapped, and then softened, "You know what happens in a week or two, and that's not the way I plan to go."

She winced and bowed her head, replying in a hurt tone, "As you wish."

"Fa-father?" Cye heard himself ask in confusion, as the Scout gingerly picked him up.

His father smiled sadly, "Be good for your mother, and sister. Protect them for me, all right?"

"Yes, sir," the boy replied in a small voice.

"You continue to do your job, Universe," With this said, the scene before Cye vanished, changing to a different one which had to be only an hour or so later.

It was apparent to him, that in order to avoid detection, Universe had allowed him to ride her piggy-back as she swam through the cold waters.

The beach was deserted, except for the two approaching figures, to which the Scout had already started to form a beam of light in her palm which she then dispersed upon their entrance into her line of sight.

Cye's eyes were even wider now, as he murmured "Mum and Sayoko?"

"Shin," His mother scooped the boy up gently, knowing he was fast asleep.

His sister glared at the Scout demanding, "Who are you?"

"Servant to those gifted by the elements," She responded quietly, "Bound and sealed by fate to protect them and those they hold dear."

"My husband?" The woman asked quietly, though she already knew.

The Scout hung her head, "He ordered me to leave without him. I had no choice but to listen."

The woman smiled slightly, "It was better this way, he wouldn't have wished to die young in a hospital bed. I don't blame you for this."

"Will…will Shin remember any of this?" Sayoko quietly asked.

The Scout raised her head slightly, "No, at least not until he wants to remember it."

"Thank you, we'll be seeing you again I'm sure," Cye's mother murmured quietly.

"I hope not, but if it comes to that, then I will be here," She answered solemnly.

Cye was left watching as the three of them walked off, then noticed the fact that the Scout still lingered, eyes widening as he realized she was bleeding profusely from her shoulder wound to which she made bigger and dug the spear-head out.

Her head snapped up and her eyes became filled with fear, as she snarled out "Twice in one day? Oh they've gone too far now!" Then vanished from sight.

* * *

Dais played rather idly with a strand of grass, caring little to have this day repeat itself in his mind. His life had been quite different from the other Seasonals…His family had been more than just reputable they had been exceedingly wealthy. He had been in a position to take it all over, once his father had handed over the reins.

Yet, it had not been what he wanted. It was not the life he had in mind for himself, not the type of man he wanted to be. "Like I turned out so much better," he sarcastically remarked. After abandoning his family duties, he had gone into assassin work. The move had come after the loss of his eye, something he had taken just a little too hard…But he'd been a foolish teenager when it happened.

The white-haired man looked up, and raised an eyebrow…This day, was just after he had learned his family had been massacred…He had reported in to his fellow 'team members' and then walked outside the porch.

But hell, where had _she_ come from?

"Hello Jirougorou," the young woman greeted, a small frown on her face. Her raven hair was swept behind her, and her eyes were much more hazel than Dais had seen them before. "Have you decided yet?"

He watched as he threw a glare at the woman, "I know you. You were in my father's employ, for what I cannot recall."

"For what is irrelevant now," she remarked with a snort. "Have you decided yet, Jiro-kun?"

He seemed to be struggling to pull out her name, but finally managed it, "I have no idea what you are talking about, An."

"You can't keep running," she said in a simple tone, there was no accusation in it, no demand. It was as though she were making a remark about the weather.

Jiro gave a snort at her comment, "Says you. Why? How did you find me?"

"Because the farther you run the more it is likely you will forget," An murmured, now looking out at the garden. "You have run from much, and if you continue running…The path I foresee you being led down, is not a kind one."

"You're a seer?" Jiro blinked and then scowled at her dismissal of his question.

"Who I am, what I do, how I found you, it doesn't matter. If you are not careful, you won't even remember this."

Jiro raised a white-eyebrow at her, what on earth did she mean? More importantly how the hell had she tracked him down? Man he did not like puzzles unless he created them, and he did not like being traced to his line of work.

"I mean it, Jirougorou, be careful. Your way is 'NIN,' endurance…But I fear you may not be able to endure the path that approaches you," she murmured out. As he whirled around to face her and demand answers to his questions…She was gone.

Dais sighed through his nose, "And how the hell did I manage to forget this?"

* * *

"Now, what on earth am I doing here?" Kento demanded a little more than peeved at this point. He didn't know if the rift had been closed or not, or what was going on in the first place.

He heard voices, and decided to follow them; this led him into his backyard, where he, as a ten-year-old, and his mother were practicing.

"Okay…" the Warrior of Strength blinked a few times, "I don't want to know do I?"

A nagging feeling, started to irritate him, as though this memory was trying to show him something, something he had forgotten.

"What did I forget?" Kento demanded of himself, and he got his answer.

Clouds a stark black that he now knew all too-well quickly formed blocking out the light in the area.

"Shuu!" Mama Faun called out, "Let's get inside before it rains."

The young boy gave a nod, but then hesitated seeing a burly object moving toward them, "What's that?"

A smaller figure leapt in from the shadows, quickly downing what Kento knew to be a Raikken, she announced in slight aggravation, "A demon that really needed to be wiped out about two thousand millennia ago."

Universe turned around, and then made a quick dive forward, snatching up a shuriken that had been tossed, and throwing it back at the demon that had thrown it.

Mama Faun actually seemed pleased that the Senshi was there, "An honor to meet a legend."

The Senshi snorted back a laugh, "Don't flatter me so! It will all go to my head." She delivered a high-kick to a Raikken archer and it crumpled into dust.

"Nice shot!" The boy praised, quickly ducking, and delivering a sound punch to the Raikken that had advanced on him.

"Not bad yourself," Universe quipped, performing a straddle split, two energy beams forming her palms, which she tossed upwards nailing two more Raikken.

Mama Faun was having a time of it herself, but though she may be old, the burly Chinese lady was putting up quite the fight, undoubtedly impressing both boy and Sailor.

The woman paused, a minute, "Are there anymore?"

"Not for this moment," Sailor Universe responded, eyes scanning the area around her, "I can't sense any."

"Mama," Shuu was tugging on his mother's dress.

"Oh heaven's, the little ones," The woman cried out sounding horrified.

The Scout shook her head, "They're fine and will remain so. I got so tired of the demons getting into houses; I put up demon wards on every single one. Took me two weeks to do that, and even then, I didn't get every place. Some people like to move more often than others."

"This has happened before?" Mama Faun looked at her aghast.

Kento grimaced at this, "Man, for someone who was supposed to be pretending she was dead, she did an awful lot of intervening. More than we thought, a lot more."

The Senshi nodded at the woman, "You have heard the legend; so, then you know there are many families I am duty-bound to protect."

The woman frowned slightly, "Yes, but still and all…"

The sentence was cut short as a Raikken crashed in to the backyard, having run through the wall unable to figure out how to get around it.

"Ugh, why can't someone invent a less embarrassing minion?" The Scout grumbled to herself, springing forward and taking it out as fast as she could. She rebounded, to take out the one who had sneaked up behind her, and then came to a full halt.

Shuu was clapping appreciatively, while his mother could only blink in surprise.

The Scout chuckled a little, and shook her head in mirth.

* * *

"Let them go, Shinshou!" The Senshi snarled out as best she could, making a forceful charge for the spirit demon, only to have him evade her.

A beam of pure light formed in her palm and she shot it off at him, nicking him in his arm.

He growled at her eyes shifting to the bindings lying dormant on the table which he then used to grab her and hold her still, "What will you do if I don't?"

He snapped his fingers and dark energy swirled throughout the ropes and into her body, causing her to gasp for air.

"You are going to die a most painful death," Universe hissed from behind clenched teeth. "I _warned_ you."

Shinshou cackled, "And you'll be the one to give it me, eh?"

Another current of pain went through her, but this time it was from one of her charges, and she did her best not to cry out in agony…If she didn't do something soon, she was going to lose them!

* * *

Kayura closed her eyes, fearful to see the horrors she was sure were coming…But, she was taken aback by the laughter she heard…Her laughter.

"Mother, come see!" the eight-year-old tugged at her mother's hand, leading her down the hall.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," the woman laughed and shook her dark head, before pushing the shoji back.

Kayura's eyes nearly bugged out of her head, when she saw the scene her younger self had practically drug her mother to. It was a sparring session, two young men lay on the floor panting heavily, and unwilling to get up. The third was doing his best but quickly failing.

It wasn't the "what" that had managed to catch her off guard, it was the person that was doing the whalloping. It was Elayne!

"Oneesan is winning, see?" the eight-year-old excitedly pointed.

Kayura's mother let out an amused chuckle, "I see. She's very skilled. Kaosu-sama, has always said that about her though."

"Really?"

"Mhm," the woman nodded, watching as the young woman proceeded to knock out her last opponent.

She drew back breathing slightly labored, then bowed to the three young men who bowed back before excusing themselves.

Kayura watched as the little girl gave a shriek of delight, crying out, "An-nee-san wins again!" Before flinging herself at the older girl.

"Kay!" she laughed and scooped her up. "Must you always spy on me, hm?"

The little girl smiled, "But it's not spying! I am in plain sight one has to hide in order to spy."

"That's a very good point," she thoughtfully noted though more to appease the child, she put the girl down. "Now then, what is it that you wanted to show me? You mentioned something…" She was drug down the hall, "Earlier!"

Kayura shook her head, "I don't believe it. She…She was actually there, came to live with the clan, like she had in the past. But…Why?" Suddenly the sinking feeling hit her, and she _knew_. "Universe has lived through this life more than once…So she was aware what would happen, and tried to intervene to stop it."

How did she know all of this…The Scout had admitted to them as much, and now she remembered…Remembered being taken by the dynasty soldiers, and An taking care of them and getting her back.

A clan member had told the woman that he would look after the girl, and that he powers and strengths were best suited to help the villagers and stop the onslaught.

The young woman had refused to budge, waiting until there were a good 3 or 4 other adults around, and then leaving to do what she could. Only, Kayura knew now, she never got a chance to see what happened to the Scout as the people protecting her were mercilessly cut down and she was taken to the Dynasty…Universe never got a second chance to intervene.

* * *

The Ronin of Strata looked around himself, a puzzled expression upon his face as he tried to figure out what he was doing here.

He was outside of his family's apartment, and he could hear the raised voices of his parents, in a minute the background changed to that of the inside of the apartment.

It was apparent to him, that his parents were heatedly discussing the divorce, and who would get what, meanwhile a young boy continued to read through his book, blatantly drowning out their rude and snide comments.

Rowen blinked, he didn't remember this argument that's for certain; maybe it was because he had been so thoroughly engrossed in the novel he was reading?

"Look," Genichirou Hashiba rubbed the point in between his eyebrows, trying to ward off the headache he was getting, "Just take what you want, all right?"

The young woman, who was his wife, frowned, saying with a slight sneer, "What if I want something that's yours?"

Rowen watched his father roll his eyes, "I don't care, but Touma gets to decide who he stays with, it's only fair."

The Strata Ronin winced at being called that, sometimes he really hated when they used his formal name.

The woman pursed her lips, "Fine. Touma-kun?"

The young boy bit back a sigh, and put down his book for a moment, "Yes?"

"Do you want to stay with your father?" She asked eyeing him with a sweet look.

"I guess so," the boy replied with a careless shrug of his shoulders, as he picked up his book again. He was disinterested in the proceedings; after all, it had been his suggestion that his parents get the divorce. He had easily seen that they were unhappy and felt burdened by the marriage, so he had told them the solution to their problem. Which they had taken to heart, after a few more stressful weeks…Or weeks of bickering more like it.

"He'll stay with you then," she replied going from sour tone, to mildly cheerful now. She could never stay angry for very long, whenever she did it wasn't pretty.

"Fine then," Genichirou responded in an even tone.

Rowen gave a bored yawn as their talk dragged, on, and all of a sudden he snapped his head to the window, noticing the thick-black clouds that were rolling in.

"But, only Raikken…" the Warrior began in shock, only to have his sentenced confirmed by the demons that came crashing clumsily through the window.

The young child that had been sitting on the sofa had now discarded his book, midnight-blue eyes wide as the monsters came lumbering towards him, and his parents.

"Where do you think you're going?" An agitated female voice hissed angrily, having appeared out of nowhere, placing herself conveniently in the middle halting the demons advances.

It was hard for the Ronin of Strata to determine who was more surprised, his parents, or himself. Maybe it was him in the here and now that was the most stunned, Raikken and Universe? Man, he was going to need to have a talk with someone later.

His mother managed to squeak out, "You…you're real?"

"Last time I checked," the Scout quipped, quickly calling forth the attack that he now recognized all too well, laying the monstrous demons to waste.

Universe let out a small smile, "I actually managed to get here in time, been globe hopping quite a bit lately, things never attack the same spot twice."

"Who…What are you?" The young boy asked in bewilderment.

She chuckled and lowered herself to his level, face full of mirth as she spoke in a cheerful tone, "Your friendly neighborhood demon slayer, and guardian of the elemental and planetary bearers. They call me Lady Universe for really short."

Genichirou actually laughed a little, "So that makes my son what exactly?"

"Ah Hashiba-san," In an instant she was back on her feet, "I think you already know. Careful, second wave."

To Rowen's surprise, his mother picked him up, and scooted back behind her husband. Genichirou was prepared to protect his family, and looked to be more than capable of doing it.

"Hell, I need to talk to him _too_," Rowen announced.

The fact that the two were now being shielded allowed the Senshi to do her job with little interruption, in a few bright flashes of light the Raikken were gone. Well most of them, two had decided to avoid the Scout altogether, and go straight for their primary target…him.

Genichirou fought off the one valiantly, but the other slipped past him and went straight for his wife and son.

Seeing this out of the corner of her eye, the Scout shouted out something that had to be from her old archaic language, and a blue barrier formed around the boy as well as his mother.

Rowen's eyes were near the size of half-dollars at this startling revelation; his armor's element had protected him though he had yet to find Strata itself.

She then quickly destroyed the demon, murmuring something else causing the barrier to vanish.

Genichirou just looked at her in bewilderment, before walking over and checking on his family. Not to his surprise, Touma had fallen asleep.

The Scout seemed amused by this as well, as she lightly remarked, "Very typical of him," She brushed his bangs aside, and murmured in a soft voice, "Memories be sealed."

Rowen watched as his mother looked at Universe with a scowl, inquiring "So he won't remember?"

"Unless you would prefer the child to have re-occurring nightmares," the young Senshi calmly responded, knowing exactly what tone she had to take with this woman. "He'll remember when he feels he is ready, until then this will have to be done."

Genichirou somehow managed to keep his face neutral as he cleared his throat, saying, "Thank you."

* * *

Cale had always expected that if a spell were to recall his worst memory, it would choose to focus on the event of one of the last battles he had participated in before joining Talpa. It had been a last attempt to capture a rival village, the commands he had been given disgusting and overtly cruel…Yet he had carried them out. KO, filial piety, for some odd reason that Bushido virtue had been able to be swayed by Talpa's evil.

Why he still didn't know, and didn't think he ever would…But he was avoiding what was going on in his mind's eye right now. It was something which baffled him completely.

He could see himself as a young boy of no more than twelve, rushing down the halls of his family home bypassing his eldest sister, Fuyuko[1] and bursting through the shoji to watch with delight as his brother, Katsuro[2] returned from battle.

Or, that is what Cale thought the little boy was waiting for, until his eyes landed on a familiar form, and he outright gaped, "She calls this not directly intervening? Does the woman have a death wish?"

"An-nee-sama!" the boy crowed with delight, approaching the young woman as she dismounted the horse.

"Kuu-kun," she greeted warmly, scooping the boy up and giving him a twirl before putting him back down. "You've shot up again. Suro, what are we to do with him? He gets taller every time we leave."

Katsuro let out a chuckle in amusement, glancing around to make sure his parents were not present, so he could avoid the customary bow…His brother was still a child, and he saw no reason to deprive him of it so soon. "I have no idea, perhaps if we stick him in a very small space?"

"Don't do that," the boy plaintively whined. "If I grow more, I will become stuck in the spot."

An was grinning amusement, saying to Katsuro, "He does make a very good point. What about we cut him off at the knees, that way only his torso can grow taller?"

The twelve-year-old gave an unhappy wail, "Nee-sama! Nii-sama! You were gone a very long time, and you have not been back long and are already picking on me."

"A long time, it was only a month, Kuu-kun," Katsuro said to his brother, before kneeling down. "How goes your studies, and your sword practice?"

Cale watched as the little boy beamed at the praise excitedly rattling off to his older brother about what he had done in their absence…His eyes were on An, who was warily scanning the area around her…Perhaps even reaching out with her other senses in order to detect if something was wrong.

Katsuro called her twice, before she shook herself, apologized and followed the two Sasaki children into the home. They would go to report to his father, Cale was certain of that…But what was she doing there, wearing near to men's clothes as possible? Such things were not allowed anywhere during that time period.

"Then again, only if you were caught did it matter," the Winter Seasonal reminded himself. "Knowing her, she did not allow herself to be caught." A few things turned over in his head, a few forgotten memories clicked into place.

An had shown up about four years before this point, it had been a grueling winter storm that had come in, and she had been caught up in it. His mother had found her, and taken her in. Nursed her back to health, and during those few weeks he had become close to the 'stranger' who he had immediately taken to calling nee-San…Which changed to nee-sama after she had gotten well and refused to leave until she paid back her debt.

His father had been instructing him with the sword one day, and had caught her watching them. At being found out, she profusely apologized for her snooping. His father had brushed it off, asked her what she thought of his son's skill. She had remarked that he showed great promise, but, and then she had hesitated till his father pressed, remarked he would do better with an easier blade as the one he had currently was heavily off-balance.

That had caught the attention of his older brother, Katsuro as well. She had been around only for two months by then, and never demonstrated knowledge of swordsmanship. Yet, she knew the no-datchi, his family's prided blade…And when his brother had jokingly teased her to a challenge right there, his father had encouraged her.

She had known the blade, known it's workings and been able to calculate his brother's movements. It had impressed all of them, and his father had kept her on and 'hired' her to keep an eye on his family when he could not. When Katsuro started to go off to battle, she had followed the armor making it impossible to tell she was a woman, and she had never let anyone get close.

"Katsuro died about two years after this," Cale recalled, sounding thoughtful. "He went off without her, and she had tried to follow only to arrive too late. She left us after that, and wishing me well…Reminded me she would always be watching. Funny, I should have taken that more literally than figuratively."

Cale figured the memory would loop itself until someone managed to find a way to break the spell, or the Cimmerian Crystal put the shield back up. And it looked like it was going to do just that, when it abruptly jumped.

The man scowled and his eyes narrowed, before he heard a whisper across his mind, _'Need you to remember this bearer. Is important.'_

"Why?" he demanded of the Winter armor

_'In order to remember past lives, must remember this past, all of it.' _

He frowned at hearing this, and then took a good look at what happened to be around him now. He knew exactly where he was, but failed to see why the armor felt he needed to see this.

Talpa had once sent him to make sure that a village up in the mountains on the mortal realm had been destroyed. Cale had been sent to make sure that no trace of the place remained and that no one had managed to survive.

At the time, and even when the memory had first come back to him some three years ago, he had never understood _why_. It was only later that he learned the village he had been sent to inspect was Kayura's. Even then, the day itself remained foggy to him. He was now about to see why.

He saw himself looking over the decimated land, a bored look plastered on his face as he failed to see the purpose of this check. All of a sudden, she was behind him…But not in Scout form, she was as she had appeared to him as a young boy, though she looked a little older now.

Cale had obviously felt her presence and he whirled around withdrawing his no-datchi, yet he did not speak mainly because she offered him a somber smile.

"Hello Kujuurou," her tone was soft. "I see you are now more skilled with your family's blade than when I saw you last."

The Warlord was outraged at her speaking his name, it was reflected in his voice, "Who would dare call me by that name, and claim to know me?"

"I see," An murmured eyes downcast. "He has you believing your own lies…So much so that you do not recall me. Meaning the others will not remember me either."

"Speak woman," Cale winced as he advanced, eyes slightly widening when she merely stepped back from him.

Her hazel eyes were narrowed, "I _am _speaking. You are _not_ listening. I did all I could but it was not enough, for that I am sorry. I failed you and the others even though I did my best to avert this."

"I won't let it be the end of it though," she said, voice filled with determination. She turned around, moved to depart, "Be wary, poor Warlord. Or I am certain you will forget much more…You will start to believe you are demon like your worthless master who is in this for his own gain."

"I cannot let you escape alive," he made move to go after her, but she gave a bored sigh and stepped out of his range easily.

She gave him a lidded-look, which hid most of the raw emotion in her eyes, "Why does it matter? He will make you forget this as well." This said, she teleported away leaving the Warlord to only gape.

Cale scowled now, "I do happen to hate it when she's right. He did make me forget that and a lot more…" The Winter Seasonal paused, "There is no way to accurately guess how many times she tried to stop Talpa from getting us on his side…The only reason he ever found us was because of the Raikken, those memories prove it. They might be bunglers, but they led him straight to each of us."  
There was plenty more he could think on, but he would have to worry about that later. Right now he needed to figure a way out of this, there was no telling what was going on in real time.

* * *

Sage remembered some of this day, but not all of it, and watching the events now, only left him more mystified and lost.

"Now Seiji," Grandfather Date said in his normal stern tone, "You must focus."

He could see himself at about nine or ten here perhaps, it was late at night, much later than normal. Or was it dark because it was going to rain?

"Yes Grandfather," the boy replied, biting his tongue desiring to say more.

The old man noticed, sharply rebuking him, "Seiji, what have I told you?"

Sage saw himself lookup about to reply, when a loud crashing noise caught both their attentions, followed by a scream.

"Satsuki!" the young boy was on his feet in an instant, and his Grandfather was already out the shoji.

Yayoi scowled deeply, as she tried to fend off the intruders, relaxing slightly upon noting that her Grandfather had arrived.

"What's going on?" the elder Date demanded, quickly ducking and taking out the Raikken who attacked him.

Sage watched all of this horrified, they had been at his home and the dojo? But how?

He watched as the young boy hit one of the soldiers in the back of the knee, asking frantically, "Satsuki, where is she?"

"I tried," Yayoi ducked under a soldier's sword swipe, "To get to where she was to see what was wrong, but these things stopped me!"

It was plain to see that fear was growing inside the young boy, and he tried to make his way to the shoji but to no avail, they were every where!

Just when he was prepared to give up, a figure came crashing through the rice paper screen with a small girl in her arms.

Blood stained her back, in great length by her left shoulder; her right arm was bleeding from a newer wound from what Sage was able to tell. And to his surprise when she worked her way into the light, it was none other than Sailor Universe.

"Sorry 'bout the door," the Scout managed to get out, "They don't believe in letting people knock."

Grandfather Date eyed the figure with mild surprise, "I know of you, your legend at least."

The Scout smirked a little, saying in amusement, "For one of the least referred to of all myths, I seem to be rather well-known."

She handed Satsuki over to Yayoi, and then glared at the remaining Raikken, calling out in a tone similar to acid, "Aleutian Silver Shards."

Sage was probably as dumbfounded as the little boy in his memory, pure shock and astonishment written over both their faces.

Grandfather Date looked her over, "You're nothing more than child. You look no more than fourteen."

"Ah Date-sama," She chuckled, "I will take that as a compliment, since I happen to be about four millennia."

The normally composed man lost it, as his eyes widened considerably and he actually gaped at her.

"You…You're how old?" The young boy asked in confusion.

The Scout gave a laugh, and studied him with amusement, "Didn't you get taught that it's rude to ask how old a person is?"

His face faltered, and he lowered his head, "I…I meant no disrespect."

She laughed harder, "Oh you, you're _still_ something." She put a hand under his chin, lifting his eyes to meet hers, "Never lower your eyes to me, all right? You have a higher status than I do, age doesn't matter. Understand?"

"Y…Yes," the child blinked.

Sage was about to relax, but then panicked as he saw a Raikken slip out of the shadows, watching as the scout used herself as a shield for him. The blade from the sword embedded itself into her already wounded shoulder, and the soldier quickly withdrew it, backing away in horror.

The Scout snarled at it, "I'm not going to let you kill anyone else!" She used her freehand summoning her attack and the Raikken disintegrated.

She looked down at the stunned boy she was holding, "Seiji, you okay?"

He looked up at her and nodded, "Wh…why?"

Sage would not get the answer, as an ear-shattering scream resounded throughout the dungeon and brought him back to awareness.

* * *

Once more the Scout pushed herself back up, she couldn't give up, not now, not like this! There had to be a way to get rid of Shinshou, and get her charges out of their trance like state, without collapsing the entire room around her.

Shinshou was cackling rather unable to help himself. Never before in his life, any of them, had a plan gone _this_ well things were going perfectly and Universe was too weak to do a thing to stop this, "You know my dear, you can be as pathetic as your charges. Those weak values you all seem to hold to so tightly. They'll do you little good in the grave, don't you agree?"

Universe snarled again, eyes narrowing showing how much hatred she had for the spirit, as she spat, "I will make _sure_ you burn, bastard."

He smirked forming another beam of dark energy as if to taunt her, and it got to her because she hesitated. Taking anymore direct hits was going to leave her in a lot of trouble, possibly comatose, more likely dead.

She gritted her teeth together, what was she supposed to do? She could not get the ten of them out of the state they were in, she was trying, had been doing so, and they had not responded at all.

_'Do what you have to,' _came the whisper, as the green star in her tiara glowed.

Her eyes went wide, _'Korin? Are you telling me to-?'_

_ 'Yes. Protect bearers, brother's and I will wake them up.'_

Universe dodged the beam of dark energy that came hurtling her way, but barely managed to evade it, she bit her lip and almost started to reach for the jewel when Simoria added her own thoughts.

_'Elayne! You can't, you're not going to be able to handle-Oh hell, you couldn't handle that kind of power the **last** time.'_

_ 'Unless you want to save them, and completely blow your cover and inform your darling **brother**_**, **_Akemliek, that you are here I'd put up, or shut-up,' _she hissed out, she got she was weak the whole world did _not_ need to point it out.

Simoria shut-up, and the Secondary Guardian let out a loose breath before reaching up and tugging off the green-jeweled star. Once in her hand she pressed her index finger to the stone and held her hand out in front of her. In a matter of moments a blade appeared in her hand, a no-datchi the hilt bearing the symbol of the Halo armor.

Shinshou's eyes nearly bugged out of his skull. She was mad! He backed away, clearly frightened. Only desperation would lead her to call on the power the armors had granted to her, the ability to tap into them in order to help protect those that wore them.

"Fool!" Shinshou shouted at her, trying to gather as much negative energy as he could for one last strike on the Scout.

Her violet eyes sparked and narrowed, "You're the fool. I warned you, and you ignored the warning. Now you pay the consequence!" She leapt forward slicing through the spirit with one quick swipe, just before he had finished gathering all the dark energy he could.

Universe collapsed to her knees panting heavily, pain still raced throughout her mind and now she had the physical trauma to go with the mental. She sent Korin a thank-you before pressing a finger to the hilt, causing the sword to vanish the power once more enclosed in the star-jeweled which she replaced in her tiara.

The armors had said they would awaken their bearers, but why hadn't they been successful? It _never_ took them this long to do anything. Her eyes picked up a half- crystal sphere lying on the floor not too far in front of her.

"Oh hell," the Senshi tried to make it back to her feet, but her strength was well spent. As she made move to try and destroy the sphere, a large amount of negative energy tore throughout her entire body.

A scream was torn from her throat, as her powers ripped away leaving her in nothing more than street clothes, as well as unconscious.

Thanos placed the hand back down at his side, before casting a look at the ten warriors. Well, Shinshou had managed to succeed near completely…Not bad, especially since Universe had caught on quicker than they had planned. Of course, he cast a bored look at the unconscious young woman she wouldn't be able to meddle further now.

He merely waited, waited until the warriors came out of the trance on their own to make it seem as though he were here to capture them and then jet out before they could do him much harm. Akemliek did not want the warriors to figure out they wanted them to remember on purpose…It'd work far better if they had no clue.

* * *

Anubis was much calmer now than he had been the first time the scents and images had come into his mind.

The Spring Seasonal had sat and watched as he had conquered over his first battle, then his second, and onward, up until the point he had become so power hungry.

He remembered what Talpa had offered, remembered all too well the words spoken…If he didn't know any better he could still hear them echoing throughout his head.

Anubis scowled deeply, trying to think of a way to snap out of the dream-like state he had been placed into. There was no telling what had happened, or what was happening. What if his friends were in trouble?

"Oh great," the Seasonal of Spring groaned, "I'm starting to think just like Wildfire."

All of a sudden he saw something, and swerved his head in that direction and his eyes reflected his puzzlement, "An?" He got up as to better here the conversation that was going on between him and her, but suddenly he didn't need to. As if a switch had been flipped on, it all came to him immediately.

His father had died in battle when he was still at a relatively young age. An had shown up to help take care of the family and the grounds, his mother had introduced her as being an 'old friend' and now he wondered if the woman had known about the yoroi and that her son was fated to bear one.

After that first year, she had come and gone…Most likely to tend to the other Seasonals now that he recalled all of this…But had hung around perhaps a month or so before he went off to battle for the first time. Then she had said her goodbyes and taken her leave.

What the two of them were arguing about now? She was trying to pull at his virtue, Chu , loyalty, remind him that he had a right to chose a master and not to chose one for the wrong reasons.

"You tried, friend," Anubis murmured out with a sad shake of his head. "We were just too stubborn to listen to your warnings. Par for the course, as you would say."

* * *

The Ronin of Wildfire was seeing the images of his past too, but this wasn't a memory that had been hidden by the Scout or anyone else; no it was one he himself had buried.

He could actually feel his own helplessness as the house around him burst into flames, he had to be four or five at the most.

Ryo knew he had been in the upstairs hall way, having heard voices and shouting which had startled him awake from below, when the flames had started up.

The child had nowhere to go and he ducked as one of the support beams came crashing down, his parents couldn't get to him they were…fighting someone?

Vivid-blue eyes widened in alarm, as he realized what exactly had invaded the Sanada household that night, Raikken. He narrowed his eyes hatefully now, so they were the ones responsible for his mother's death.

"But how did I survive if they couldn't get to me?" Ryo murmured in confusion.

Another beam from the ceiling was just about to fall, and then he felt it, rather saw it now, someone wrapped their arms around him, gently picked him up and used themselves as a shield taking the force of the hit.

Then he watched as the figure took him, and jumped out the nearest window making sure that he would not be hit by any of the glass shards that had broken free.

They had landed not far from the raging fire, and she had walked a few extra feet away, before putting him down on his feet.

The little boy was distraught, frantically asking, "Kaa-san? Tou-san, where are they?"

"Calm down," the Scout soothed, her voice was that of an exhausted person's, one who had done too much in too little a span of time, "They're coming, Rekka-kun be patient."

He quieted, looking up at her worry in his innocent eyes, "Did you get hurt? Sorry."

Universe chuckled a little, "Don't apologize; someone has to keep you out of trouble."

The young boy then turned and faced his burning home, watching as his father came out cradling his mother. He ran over, as the elder Sanada placed the woman down she had sustained wounds from her fight, as well as the fire.

The Guardian had to haul herself up to her feet, her body just as injured, if not more so.

"Kaa-san?" Ryo heard himself softly inquired.

The woman let out a low moan and opened her eyes, "There he is. You all right my little one?"

He avidly nodded in response, and then wailed, "You're hurt!"

"Yes I suspect I am," She smiled gently, getting enough strength for tousling his hair, "You take care of your father for me, all right?"

"Yes, Kaa-san," he murmured lowering his head a little, figuring something he had done had caused this.

"Universe," His mother's blue-eyes had shifted over to the young girl, who appeared to be trying to heal her, "Save your strength it's my time."

"The _hell_ it is," the Senshi defiantly stated, breathing heavy…But Ryo could see that she was pushing herself to focus, and that she was causing herself more harm in the process. The wound on her arm which had started to heal stopped doing so and started bleeding.

She was trying to get rid of the burns on the woman, having managed to heal the injuries from the Raikken. But she was struggling even more, and the look in her eyes told Ryo all he needed to know. That she knew it was no use.

"You are wounded as well," Takumi murmured to her in a soft tone of voice.

"It...It doesn't matter," Universe stubbornly stated, unable to prevent the tears from spilling down her face. Ryo closed his eyes knowing then that his mother had given up the fight; he no longer desired to see anymore.

To his surprise, he got his wish as he was abruptly returned to the world around him. His friends and comrades were also back, somewhat dazed and still fighting off the effects of being in the trance. The Ronin Leader's blue eyes narrowed upon recognizing the fact someone else had joined them; Thanos.


	23. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty-Two:**

**Written: October 2006**

**Revised: May 1, 2008**

The black tiger had been unable to locate where the warriors had vanished too, and had spent his time looking for them. He had been tracing a scent, one he recognized as belonging to the ice demon, throughout the palace and when he went back to the dining hall they were gone.

And when he tried to search out Elayne with his senses he hadn't been able to find her, and Black Blaze had immediately come to the conclusion that they had gone down the corridor.

He had shot off in that direction, knowing rather well where it was…Only to find by the time he had arrived, that it was too late to do much good.

Universe had finished cleaving Shinshou in half stowing the weapon away, and then Thanos appeared taking the advantage of her being weak as well as distracted.

The tiger had given an angry yowl recognizing the object lying on the floor for what it was, and quickly destroyed it, before leaping at Thanos claws unsheathed and teeth bared.

Now he had managed to force the demon to get away from the defenseless girl, and the warriors who were coming out of the locking spell Shinshou had placed them into.

Thanos spat at the tiger, feathers obviously ruffled, "You need to stop _helping_."

Kayura was now back to her full senses, and she dove forward jitte in her hands and poised to strike at him, "So you were involved in all of this afterall!"

He sneered at the Lady Ancient unimpressed with her assessment, "What an astute assumption. Shinshou discovered the rift and kept it open hoping to lure you all here." That part was truth, now it was time for the lie, "In hopes to hand you over to me, and then I could deliver you to Akemliek."

"It would seem Universe was able to catch on," the ice demon remarked sounding bored. "Even though we took great pains to ensure you would cut her power in half…She still managed to figure it out. It was pure luck that her powers were still largely unusable. It would seem that the tiger managed to break the spell, even though I made sure she couldn't."

He glared at the creature with a look of utmost hatred and anger, "Stupid beast."

Black Blaze growled and lunged forward, swiping at the ice demon and knocking him off his feet, he then tried to pin Thanos to the ground, but the demon vanished. Having planted the truth and the lie there was no further need for him to linger about.

"Wha-what just happened?" the Torrent Ronin asked in bewilderment.

"Locking spell," the Winter Seasonal answered, "The plan was to keep us in our memories, thus keeping us frozen and unable to react to what was occurring in the here and now."

"Okay, so why?" the archer inquired, "And what did he do to-" Rowen stopped, eyes widening in dismay.

The Ronin of Wildfire had already found out what had been done, having seen the motionless figure on the floor not that far in front of him. He had moved forward, and knelt down before gently pulling the unconscious girl into a sitting position.

But even the easy movement caused her to wince, her face already filled with pain. Ryo gritted his teeth together as he evaluated the damage that had been done with a brief scan…His stomach churned.

"Elayne!" Kayura shrieked stowing her weapons, and rushing over placing her hands on the girl's forehead.

Ryo frowned studying the Ancient's face, her brows were knitted in concentration, but her eyes…There was fright in them.

"What's wrong?" Sage immediately inquired not missing the look at all.

Kayura spoke, her tone full of puzzlement and worry, "She lost some blood not too substantial though. It's her energy level…It's just gone there's nothing there at all. Almost, almost as though it was never there to begin with."

The Ronin of Wildfire immediately knew what had caused it, the armors…They had permitted her to fight with their power, knowing her's was practically gone.

She had to have been desperate to use that power, out of options and out of time to wait for them to come back around on their own. He knew all too well, how long it'd take her to get her strength back from this now.

Dais warily checked each corner, to find nothing, "Let's go, lingering in this part of the palace can't be good for anyone. Especially her when her energy's been practically cut."

Everyone gave nods in agreement to this, still a little shaken by the memories they had seen, and the truths they had garnered from it. Ryo carefully picked the girl up, and they all made their way out of the corridor.

Black Blaze gave one more doubtful look to the room, and then booked after the warriors, not desiring to be in the vile place a moment longer.

* * *

**Four Days Later: Shinwako Mansion **

Kayura let out a yawn, as she thumbed through the magazine Kirstin had lent her. They had returned to the mortal realm, a mere two days before, since moving Elayne before then had been out of the question.

Well, she had been afraid that such a move might injure her poor friend further, and Sage had quickly concurred with it. The two of them had worked hard to try and get her wounds to heal, and the gashes, and broken bones had mended rather reluctantly.

For some odd reason the Cimmerian Crystal had done little to help, as far as Kayura could discern it hadn't done a thing to heal her. That bothered her a bit…Actually no it worried her a great deal.

Add to the fact Elayne had not returned to consciousness at all, well she was starting to get close to panicking. Her form of panicking being calling out the Ancient, clobbering him with the staff and demanding he offer a solution to this problem. Granted, she knew full well he wouldn't know what to do, but beating him with the staff would make her feel a little better.

She also had another thing to ponder over: the fact that the Ronin Elementals were acting differently. It only became apparent when she brought up Elayne, at times they would get this faraway look in their eyes. When she would press as to what was the matter they would hastily reply with 'nothing' and find an excuse to leave.

The Lady Ancient was certain that the Ronin had witnessed memories concerning Universe, or An, physically intervening in their past in some way. She somehow doubted it was in the way the Secondary Guardian had for her and the other Seasonals, seeing as how Elayne had been around throughout the Ronin's lives.

And yes, the four Seasonal bearers had told her about it…She had brought up what she had seen, and in turn they had confessed their own 'visions of the past' as they were.

So the question that was currently boggling her mind was: what had the young men seen and why did it have the five of them so…Worked up?

"Oh men are so aggravating," She threw the magazine onto the nightstand, and got up slipping her feet into a pair of soft slippers.

She poked her head out the door, and entered the hall noting how quiet it was. Well it was quiet until she caught the discussion occurring in the living room, not too far below her; she looked down over the railing to actually see what was going on.

Kayura let out a low moan, Elemental Senshi versus Ronin Elementals; typical. The four young women had not stopped badgering them all since they got back, especially upon seeing the condition Elayne was in.

Once they had gotten around that, the Senshi had immediately picked up on the moods of their elemental partners and had not been willing to let it drop. Kayura was fully aware that nothing would stop them, until they got an answer.

"What on earth is the matter with you guys?" Vanessa demanded in aggravation, "Why do you keep avoiding the questions?"

"Ness , not now," Cye murmured looking up from an art book he had been skimming.

"No way," the Water Senshi snapped, snarling out, "I want an answer Cye. I'm not leaving you five alone till I get one. You have my word on that."

Sage gave the woman a narrowed look, "It's none of your business."

"I'm making it my business Halo," She growled at him, Kirstin quickly put an arm around her friend to hold her back.

The Earth Scout looked at the five young men in distaste, "Just answer the question, we're not leaving you alone on this one. Mainly because of the way you've all been acting. And while we are on this, why the hell are you steering so far clear of Elayne?"

"Kirs, you don't want to know," Rowen murmured as he diverted his attention from the television to the raging Elemental Scouts.

Aurora glared at the Strata Ronin, she and Callista having just come up from the basement, "Try us."

Ryo let out a strangled sigh, "All right fine, you win." Really he wasn't surprised by this, for in the past the Elementals had always been right on their partners' cases when something was the matter. "I don't know if the Seasonals told you anything…I'm not even sure what they went through." He paused as Aurora had nodded.

"They did, further they actually told us what occurred. When Universe said she interfered in our lives, she did a lot more than indirect intervention. An was there; in that human form and involved herself in their lives, much like she did with us."

The five young men exchanged looks with one another; really at this point whatever surprise they might have had was gone. That was only because they were starting to accept things, the main one that Universe had no regard for her own-being and probably never did.

"It was reverse for us," Sage said softly, "The memories had been hidden like with the Seasonals, but Universe was in them."

"What…What do you mean?" Confusion was written all over Vanessa's face, as she tried to grasp where this was heading.

"Those Raikken you always call 'rogues?' Over the years they spent their time attacking us. That includes our families," Rowen bitterly muttered, "They were trying to kill us before we became old enough to receive the power destined to us."

"Are you serious?" Kirstin was pale, far paler than any of her friends had seen her.

Ryo gave a nod, "Yeah. The fire that killed my mother when I was little, they're the ones who started it. I was on the second floor; there was no way for me to get out. When the support beam to the roof came down, I thought that was it, all I've ever been able to remember was someone grabbing me and shielding me from the blow. It was Uni, she was there."

The Ronin of Hardrock frowned, "From what we figure, I had to be one of the last one's they bothered to attack. I was outside with Mama when they showed up. Universe showed up before they could do much though."

"What…What about you three?" Aurora had wearily sunk into the opposite sofa, legs unwilling to carry her.

Rowen let out a long sigh, "The day my parents were going over the divorce documents, before getting it all legalized. They crashed through the apartment window; she showed up and placed herself in the middle. They almost managed to hurt me, but she called on the power of my element. It seems that though we didn't have the armors, we were still very much tied to the elements we represented, mine protected me when she called on it."

Cye was quiet for a few minutes; he hadn't told his friends exactly what had transpired, and he wasn't thrilled with having to say anything about it. But he knew he wasn't going to get any peace from anyone, if he kept silent.

"My father and I went out for a short boat trip, nothing fancy," Torrent's bearer murmured, causing everyone's attention to go to him now.

He related the entire tale in muted tones, but Kayura could still hear it all quite clearly. It left her shocked and stunned beyond all imagination.

"Cye…" The Sailor of Air began, "I…"

"It's all right," the young man smiled a little, "My father had some form of cancer, he was coming to the end of the period the doctors had given him. Like my Mum said, he wanted to go out fighting. What unsettled me the most, was what happened after the three of us left her. The spear-head was still embedded into her shoulder, and she got it out, but then she went right after another group."

"Which shoulder was it?" the blonde swordsman inquired, his sudden question startling those around him.

"Her left, why?" the Torrent Ronin eyed his friend with a puzzled look.

"I was the one the Raikken attacked after you," Sage said in his normal calm and even tone, "My parents were not home, and my Grandfather and I were out practicing, when we heard Satsuki scream from the house. We got to the house, and Yayoi was trying to get past the Raikken. Universe came crashing through the shoji with Satsuki in her arms, a good amount of dried blood on her left shoulder; she had also sustained newer injuries."

"It's crazy," Kirstin muttered, "I…I don't believe that she could be so self-destructive."

The Halo Ronin gave a small smile yeah sometimes Universe reminded him of Ryo in some respects, then again maybe she was where Ryo had picked it up from.

He continued, "There was a straggler, and it would've killed me, had she not thrown herself in the way. When she said she interfered wherever she could, she _meant_ it in the literal context."

Vanessa nodded, saying, "I agree with you, and when and where Universe couldn't be present she acted through Elayne unknowingly."

"How so?" Ryo asked, studying the woman with a raised eyebrow.

She offered a grin, but it faded, "When Elayne came to stay with my mother and I, naturally I had to take care of her and let her hang out with me and my friends."

"She's the one who looked after us," Kirstin said in amusement, "Certain things happened that could've gotten us seriously injured, or killed and she made sure she got in the way."

Aurora seemed to realize the tension this had caused in the atmosphere and quickly added onto what he friend had said, "She never got seriously hurt, but she could have."

The five young men relaxed slightly upon hearing this, and three of the Elemental Scouts rolled their eyes, sometimes the Ronins took their protective brother status too far. However the one exception this rule was Vanessa, the young woman had gone pale and was nervously wringing her hands.

"That's not true Orey," the Water Senshi murmured in a small voice, looking up.

Kirstin put an arm around her friend, "Come on sis, you don't have to tell them."

"N...No I think I do," Vanessa managed to get out, and then took a deep breath, letting out slowly, "Talpa wasn't the only reason Elayne ended up in the hospital."

"Go ahead Ness ," Kento offered her an encouraging smile.

The woman gave a quick nod, "We were on our way back to the apartment, it was midday, but a storm had been brewing and we wanted to get home before it started. We had to cross the street; we had the okay to walk…" She stopped not wanting to continue.

Callista let out a sigh through her nose, "Orey, Kirs, and I had already made it across, and Ness was with Elayne trying to get her to talk again. We had said some things around breakfast that she avidly disagreed with, and she spent the rest of the day ignoring us. Now being the area it was, we were used to driver's who forgot to pay attention…But…"

"You heard the officer as well as I did!" Vanessa cried out, "The driver was dead, and they said it wasn't a natural death. You know the Raikken had a hand in it."

"Calm down," Kirstin rebuked her friend sharply.

The woman did so, and continued, "I wasn't paying attention, but she was. She yelled at me to move, and she shoved me out of the way…"

Ryo closed his eyes, and shook his head…That was just further proof that the Secondary Guardian was crazy and took her job way the _hell_ to seriously.

"Luckily she didn't get hit head on, she managed to leap far enough out of the path, but she was laid up for a week and a half," Aurora murmured quietly.

"Yeah very lucky," the Strata Ronin mumbled in agreement, running a hand through his hair.


	24. Chapter 23

**Chapter Twenty-Three:**

**Written: March 20th 2008 & May 1st 2008**

Elayne listened to all of this with a sigh, and gave a soft shake of her head. If they had only known how much more she would have gladly done…But it didn't matter anymore. She was fully prepared to abandon the house, but something made her stay.

Sage waited until the Sailor Elementals left the room, satisfied with the answers they now had and no longer worried about things, before murmuring, "There's something else, you guys."

"What's up?" the Wildfire Ronin queried, immediately sitting back down in the chair. The others all looked to the Ronin of Halo and waited for a response.

"We don't talk about it," the swordsman said finally. "You've never pressed, and I've never willingly ventured anything. You all respected my decision never to speak about New York , and I appreciate it. But, I need to bring it up because of something Halo showed me about two weeks ago."

The four were silent, and now Elayne was almost leaning over the banister to get a look on what was going on below her. Not far from her, Kayura was doing just that, straining to hear what might be said.

The archer let out a loose breath, "All right, buddy. Go ahead and drop the bomb on us."

Sage gave a nod and looked to Ryo, "You know Elayne was in New York , and that Cye and Kento visited her, right?" His leader gave a nod, "Did you also know that she followed them back to the restaurant, without telling them her purpose but with the intent to check on Rowen and I?" Ryo gave another nod, and the swordsman's lips twitched up into a small smile, "Nobody ever bothered to tell you I bet, that Elayne was the reason Cye and Kento found you and Ro near the water plant."

"How did Halo know that?" Hardrock's bearer demanded with a blank look on his face.

"It didn't; your armor let it slip," the blond chuckled out, before saying in a quiet tone, "That's not what Halo wanted me to see, actually all it wanted was for me to recall something which I nearly forgot. When I was in the hospital, before we made the trek back to New York…"

He let out a half-sigh as he continued, "I was really out of it, and as such I didn't remember. With as ill as I was, the doctors told you I was going to fail, if I wasn't in that state already." He looked to them to see if they knew what he was referring to.

Cye gave a nod, "Yes, they said it would take a miracle for you to make it. But, you made it."

"It was a miracle," the swordsman remarked largely in amusement. "It was Universe. I never thought much of it, but I heard her voice. The only reason I'm still alive is because she undid what was done…I wouldn't allow Halo to heal me then."

Ryo gave his friend a sympathetic look, "It's understandable Sage, back then and now. But dare I ask what you think prompted your armor?"

"At one point I connected well with Halo, to the point where I almost understood its thoughts, but I never trusted it again even after Suzunagi gave us the new armors. I've been trying to move past that as of late, and it felt that New York was an important point to cover, so it showed me what I missed…" Sage paused, and then said, "Actually, what we all missed. Halo was kind enough to show me your little dive into the Harbor."

"No, no way!" Kento said in protest, "You mean to tell me Uni had a hand in that, _too_?"

Halo's bearer gave a nod, "Yeah, she threatened the armors, more specifically Strata and Torrent."

"Oi," the archer moaned out rubbing at his forehead; really this should not have come as any big surprise. Especially, with everything else they had learned lately.

Elayne pulled back from her spot, and once more shook her raven-head. She could have gone further as she was not directly intervening in their lives during New York. Back then, she had simply been directly dealing with the armors, it was nothing more than that.

_'I did not do enough,'_ she thought bitterly.

Since they were normally on the same wavelength, the swordsman was not at all surprised to pick that up when he shouldn't have. He privately queried of her with a good deal of mirth in his voice, _'So, does stopping my armor from killing anymore innocents count as not doing enough?'_

Elayne stopped dead in her tracks, _'It showed you that? What in the name of the Great Council for?'_

_ 'To stop you from claiming you did not do enough?' _Sage dryly responded, before given her the answer, _'The armor thought it was important that I understand what happened because while to all of us it may not look like you did enough, they know you did more than what you should.'_

_'Even the armors cannot fathom how much more I could do, could have changed for the better and should but didn't out of fear for worse consequences,'_ the girl mumbled in response, leaving out nor would anyone know _how_ much she had done.

Not willing to linger about any longer, she turned to leave and began to walk away. She just wouldn't get very far.

"Wow," Kayura murmured to herself, "And she keeps saying she didn't do enough? What a nut."

Suddenly she saw a movement out of the corner of her eye and whirled around, calling out in confusion, "Elayne?"

Elayne grimaced at being caught, and turned her head asking innocently, "Ya?"

The woman narrowed her eyes, "Where do you think you're going? You're as white as a ghost, you lost blood and way too much power! You should be in bed!"

The girl let out a moan, and put a hand to her forehead as the ranting continued, and she tried to interrupt, "Kay, hey Kay?"

Unfortunately, the woman continued on her angry tirade and Elayne shouted overtop of her friend in annoyance, "LADY KAYURA!"

The Ancient closed her mouth with a snap, staring at the girl in surprise, no one ever called her that unless it was serious, or they were seriously irritated at her.

"Shut _up_," the Secondary Guardian nonchalantly stated, before turning back around, walking carelessly to the window.

The sounds of rushing footsteps, and labored breathing reached the girl's ears next, and she rolled her eyes, unlatching the window and pushing it open.

At this point she needed the fresh air, she felt stifled here…But that was not unusual, there were few times when she didn't feel like she was being suffocated to death and that the walls were closing in around her.

"Elayne?" Ryo gently inquired, not quite sure what to expect from her now.

She turned around, and gave him a look; actually she gave them all a look, "What do you want?"

Kayura hadn't been lying; the girl's skin was so pale it looked near-to ivory, though it might have stood out more to them because her hair was such a dark color.

"You should be resting still," Cye began softly, and then paused seeing the look on her face.

She snorted through her nose, "I've been looking after myself for a long time. I don't need anyone telling me what I should be doing, and what I shouldn't be, especially you guys. It's an **_insult_**."

Sage gave a wince but remained silent, knowing better than to intrude with the mood she was in. Clearly, she wanted to be left alone and he planned to respect that. Though, he doubted very much the others would.

Elayne went back to facing the window, going as far as to sit in the ledge, letting her legs hang outside the building; proving to further unsettle the Ronin.

Her violet eyes lingered on the sky for a moment, the scent of rain just out of reach, and then to the ground below her.

Rowen bristled at the comment, and glared at her back trying to leave an imprint there, stating icily, "So sorry it's an insult to you that we actually care."

"Oh please, you know you could care less," the girl retorted in boredom, letting herself relax a little.

All she had been seeing ever since she had fallen unconscious some days before were the same memories and events that had been plaguing her tired soul for years…The same _damn_ thing over and over again. It wasn't getting any easier for her to swallow, no it had become harder…Harder to except and admit.

"Ya you're right," Rowen said all of a sudden, startling his four brother's-in-arms, they only relaxed when he then clarified: "I wish I could care less, because then I wouldn't be so ready to strangle you for not taking care of yourself!"

The girl let out a moan, "Okay, geez Rowen, take a chill pill. Look, I'm sorry okay? But that's the way it has to be."

"No it doesn't," Kento argued now, "Your life is…"

"Nowhere near as valuable as yours, so get used to it," Elayne sharply stated, "Discussion over."

"I think not," Sage brought in abruptly, he had not liked where she had taken this and had been willing to leave her be up until that point. "You won't even let one begin, imouto."

"Oi, I should've staid unconscious!" The girl grumbled loud enough for them to here, as she slightly leaned forward, and then fell out the window.

"ELAYNE!"

She landed with a soft thud, and looked up at the horror-filled faces of the five young men, asking in alarm, "What?"

Realization dawned at her and she cried out in irritation, "Oh please, cut me a break!"

Sekhmet had been standing on the porch below, and watched this, he was snickering something fierce.

"Shut-up Sekhmet," Elayne told him, grabbing the man by the arm and hauling him forward, "Come on already."

He just blinked at her and followed her lead, asking incredulously, "You still want to go on patrol?"

"Duh," The girl stated looking back to the Ronin, some of whom were now seething, "I don't want to be anywhere near them right now, they're too temperamental for my taste."

He snorted back a laugh, "Them? What about you?"

She gave him a look, and he shut his mouth with a firm snap.

* * *

"Yes, peace and quiet," Elayne happily sighed, a light rain having to started to fall not more than fifteen minutes into their patrol.

The Fall Seasonal rolled his eyes, "I still can't believe you woke up…"

The girl waved him off, "I woke up yesterday; I just didn't have a reason nor the desire to get out of bed. Today I knew I had patrol duty with you, and any chance to get out of that stifling house and away from it's scrutinizing occupants is a good enough reason for me."

"You really are mad at them, aren't you?" Sekhmet softly inquired.

Her shoulders drooped slightly, "How could I be? What happened back there as well as back then; well, they didn't have any control over it."

"No, that's not what I was referring to. They wouldn't check on you, they seemed almost afraid too," the man clarified, running a hand through his off-green hair, and offering a rare smile, "Then again I would have been too."

Elayne chuckled at this, "I'm not mad about any of that, I know why they did it. They didn't want me to pick up on what emotions they were feeling. It didn't work though; I could still sense their moods anyway. Cursed female intuition and sixth sense, gets me every time."

Sekhmet let out a laugh, "You're obviously feeling better," He paused having noticed something. "As a matter of fact, your color's starting to come back."

She gave a nod, "I'm in my element is why."

"Huh?" He blinked in confusion, "I thought you were a fire elemental?"

The girl was prepared to answer, but suddenly changed her mind, "Watch it!" She shoved him roughly to the ground, and then did a few forward leaps to avoid being skewered by the arrows being shot their way.

The Seasonal of Fall had quickly called up his sub armor, and narrowed his eyes at where the arrows were coming from, picked up a rock and chucked it at the tree.

It hit the Raikken square-on, causing it to fall from its perch and land with a heavy thud.

He snarled at it, leaping forward with a high-kick catching it in its midriff section causing it to fall backwards and crack against a rock; it exploded into ash.

His eyes moved quickly around him, having thought he detected the scent of the ice demon, but he couldn't find it now, "It's all clear now."

"Great," Elayne rasped out, "Could you do me a favor and get this arrow out of my shoulder? I don't have enough hand strength."

He whirled, wincing upon seeing how it had embedded itself into the front part of her right shoulder; he walked over, and quickly pulled it out.

"Thanks," She put a hand over the wound to try and impede the bleeding, "I really think I should've staid _in_ bed."

Sekhmet chuckled, "I'm inclined to agree with you there. By the way, er…" He was trying to get out the word thank you, for having prevented him from being a shish kabob, but found it hard to do so.

"Just doing my job, Seky, don't get upset or prideful over it, cause I'll pound you into the ground," she cheerfully quipped at the man.

"Like you did to Cale?" He tried not to grin, but failed in doing so.

She beamed at him, "Exactly like I did to Cale. That fool was asking for it."

"Again, I agree," the Fall Seasonal shook his head in mirth, "Do you think he and Kayura will ever stop arguing?"

"Probably not," she turned her eyes skyward for a moment, "Oh we better head back, it's going to pour."

"I thought we were in your element, right now?" Sekhmet inquired, "You were going to explain, before we were disturbed."

"I can't believe you forgot," Elayne remarked in amusement, saying, "Yeah we are in my element, but I know you don't want to get drenched." She removed her hand from the still open wound. To his surprise after a few rain drops had touched the spot, it had vanished.

"I'm the Scout of Pain and Sorrow, remember?" the girl asked, as she stuck her hands in her pockets and started to head back to the house.

Sekhmet gave a nod, "Yes. But, I still want to know how you can be a fire elemental as well. Pluto never explained that."

"Ryo's power which he accesses through Rekka, comes from lava, fires in general, but more notable savannah wildfires. It's why the armor is also called Wildfire," the girl elaborated. "My 'fire' is different. It comes from the forest fires caused by lightning strikes. They start without warning and can burn for miles on end. So, again he and I are alike, but overall we're not."

"I see, makes sense now," the green-haired man remarked, though he frowned. "How has he been towards you as of late?"

"I just woke up Nao," Elayne chuckled at him, but knew what he meant. "During our 'stay' he treated me like normal, but I _know_ Kikoutei is lurking underneath the surface. It's just waiting for another excuse to get him to lash out at me."

The Fall Seasonal frowned, "Is there anything we can do?"

"Not at the moment, no," the girl answered with a sigh. She wrinkled her nose in irritation as the house was now fully in view. "Meh, I don't suppose I can get in there without getting berated?"

"I highly doubt it," Sekhmet chuckled out.

Elayne nodded, "What I figured, see ya later Sekhmet. I'm going back to bed." She walked over to a shadow, and vanished.

Sekhmet chortled at this, and casually walked onto the porch just before the skies opened up once again. He entered the house, and said calmly to the Ronin sitting there, "Don't _bother_. She teleported herself to her room."

The young men grumbled at hearing this, they were _not_ pleased.


	25. Chapter 24

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

**Written: 2007**

**Revised: May 1, 2008**

**May 1997**

The time passed quickly, or not so much. It really depended on the point of view, or one's matter of opinion. Regardless of all of this, the warriors had managed to fall back into the routine they had before their trip to the Nether Realm.

Strata and Halo went back to their classes and were quick to make up the work they had missed. Both were lucky in the fact all their classes were not based on attendance but completion of the work before the last week of class (wherein they had to take the final tests, or turn in final projects).

Cye had finished up his last commission piece before they left, and upon their return had received a letter or two asking him to do more pieces. So he had once again resigned himself to his artwork. Kento was back to helping his family with the business, and had managed to convince Ryo to give a hand here and there since it'd give him something to do.

The Seasonals…Were the Seasonals and still had no use for getting jobs at mortal places in order to generate an income. It seems that, the four men and Lady Ancient actually had quite a substantial amount of yen within each of their possessions.

How they came by this was anyone's guess, and really the Ronin did not _want_ to guess. The Elemental Senshi were coming and going still slaving away on the newest album. Elayne had not ventured far from the mansion, though she had returned to her job (and far before the others thought she should).

So, things settled down on the fighting front to the point battles were practically non-existent. Only to have things get more interesting on the personal front.

Apparently, _someone_ had let it slip that Ryo had bet Elayne to go on a date with him…And she was now stuck with that deal. It had traveled quite far, to the point even the Inner and Outer Senshi knew about it.

Neither the Ronin of Wildfire or the Secondary Guardian were at all happy with the teasing that resulted from this…"leak." But it really, when taken in a certain light, wasn't _that_ bad.

After all, being the only ones out of all the warriors with full memories, Ryo and Elayne had plenty of ammunition to fire back with. And, what made it all the more enjoyable, was the fact the information was not things the others were privy too.

It took about a week before everyone surrendered, and stopped harassing the pair almost completely. The reason for the admission of defeat? Nothing more than them being unable to handle the jibes about who they were "dating" in one of the _many_ past lives.

Still, it did not change the fact that the date was going to occur…And when Wildfire finally told her that he had picked the day…Well…

* * *

The Lady Ancient had been talking at length to the Fall Seasonal, and then she looked up catching movement behind her, and abruptly announced, **"**We'll be back." Her prey had finally emerged from the hiding spot.

Elayne froze, spun on a dime, and tried to make a hasty retreat back up the stairs, only to be yanked back down by the Lady Ancient.

"Ack, Kay!" The girl yelped as she was drug through the living room and then out the front door.

They had made it off the porch steps, before she finally wrenched her arm free. She glowered at the young woman, "Was **_that_**, really necessary?"

"Yes," Kayura replied completely unashamed with herself, brushing a stray lock of hair back into place, "You did say I could help, remember?"

Elayne let out a low groan, wailing, "How did you find out it was today?"

"Torrent," She replied with a sweet smile, "Now come on Layne."

"Ugh that traitor. I'm going to _murder_ him," she grumbled out, adding in annoyance, "But I stand corrected, **_this_** is going to be the longest day of my life."

* * *

"Honestly Elayne," Kayura moaned in complaint, "Don't you have anything to wear that isn't casual?"

"I left the flaunting to Lindsay just because she was a natural at it," the girl answered in a bored tone from her spot by her desk as she tried to straighten it out while Kayura sifted through the dresser drawers. The last of the Ancient's clan had insisted on raiding Elayne's room at the Estate for the "perfect" outfit.

The Lady Ancient blew out through her mouth, in order to get her bangs out of her face, after a few moments she threw her hands up in defeat and walked over to where the girl was. She peered over her friend's shoulder to see what it was that had so fully caught her attention.

Elayne ran her hand over the framed photograph, a small smile coming to her face as she carefully studied the four young men.

"When was that taken?" Kayura asked softly, noting that the Ronins of Halo, Torrent, Strata and Hardrock couldn't have been more than sixteen. The young girl standing next to the Ronin of Halo had to be at least eleven; she had bunny ears up on Rowen, who was kneeling down making it possible for her to do this.

"Uncle Chen took it, it was right before they left to come back here," she answered as she put it back down.

"Oh," Kayura murmured, suddenly another picture caught her eye, and she quickly scooped it up.

The very young boy seemed to be trying hard not to laugh, at the girl who had her head propped up on his, arms around his neck. All in all, Kayura considered it be a very cute pose.

"Is this you and Wildfire?" Kayura asked curiously.

Elayne quickly glanced over at the photo and grinned a bit, "Ya, Sanada-san took that around Ryo's eleventh birthday."

Kayura put it back and scanned over the other photos, "You look happy in all of these. Shame you aren't anymore."

"Huh?" The girl blinked several times in confusion.

The Lady Ancient tilted her head and stated, "You don't smile like that, and you rarely laugh anymore. From what I hear you used to laugh a lot."

"That was before all my great memories decided to come back as nightmares and traumatize a normal person who just didn't get it," she watched as Kayura walked back over to the dresser. "Now, I get it, and remember it _all_. It's very hard to be sunshine and flowers when the world is anything but."

"Or when you're life has been a living hell?" the Ancient added over her shoulder.

Elayne thought it over and then nodded, "Ya, that too."

She strolled over to watch as Kayura rummaged through another dresser drawer, "So, Kay, you and Ro set a date yourselves yet?"

"Don't you dare," the woman went pink. "Go on about Rowen and I, you little piss ant."

"Ah," the girl sounded thoughtful, "That means he hasn't yet. No worries Kay, he'll get there eventually."

The Lady Ancient's eye twitched and the girl sniggered at this not at all ashamed of her behavior or the fact she was irritating her friend. Kayura continued to skim through the clothing, not at all finding what she was looking for. Finally, she gave up.

"Oh don't you have any 'out' clothing at all?" The Lady Ancient whimpered, and stood straight, "That's it, we're going shopping."

Elayne rolled her eyes walking over to her closet, opened the door and threw on the light switch, "You could've asked what I had in my closet, like an hour ago?"

Kayura sheepishly grinned, striding over, "Ya I probably should have done that instead of starting to look right away. You know me; have to do things my way."

"Uh huh. I know that from first hand experience as well as from personal accounts," the girl quipped, watching with a raised eyebrow as Kayura halted with a shocked expression on her face.

"You have a desk and chair, in your walk-in closet?" The woman asked blinking her eyes a few times.

Elayne let out a nervous chuckle, "I ran out of places to hide from Lindsay and my legal guardian."

Kayura just rolled her eyes and walked into the closet, a few minutes passed before she let out a joyous shriek, "Yes!"

The girl saw what her friend had spied and let out a groan, "I am not wearing **_that_**!"

"Oh yes you are," the Lady Ancient smirked.

"Hey Kay, there's a reason the price tags are still on it," Elayne grumbled crossing her arms in front of her chest, knowing that her friend would pay her no heed at all.

Elayne let out a despairing sigh silently sending out to whatever outside forces there were, _'Why couldn't you have chosen some other sap to pick on?'_

* * *

"Have a good time, _lover boy_," Rowen snickered watching as Ryo tried to straighten out his shirt collar.

The young man hissed under his breath, he had tried his best not to let anyone find out about tonight after the fuss they gave just finding out. However, some outside force, as usual, decided to throw a wrench in his planning and secretiveness. Frankly, he was starting to wonder why he bothered to try to hide _anything_ anymore.

One of the Elemental Senshi had over heard Cye and Kayura talking…Thirty minutes later, everyone knew that the famed date was going to happen tonight. As the Strata Ronin continued to jeer him, the Ronin leader thought to himself with a mental grumble, _'I knew I should've started renting an apartment.'_

He walked downstairs only to wish he had slipped out the second floor window instead, seeing as how the living room was filled with the entire house's occupants who were applauding, cheering, and whistling.

The Wildfire Ronin gave an inward groan, and demanded, "Why can't any of you get a life?"

"We have a life!" Dais quickly protested.

He quirked a darkened eyebrow, "Sitting here all day, does not qualify. I mean life as in, a paying job, or volunteering or something to get you out of this house."

"Dude, back in September you were the only one of us," Kento brought in with a pointed look, "Without a paying job."

Ryo was now scowling, "But two weeks prior to the company downsizing I had a decent-steady job. And yes I am thankful to be helping out at the restaurant Kento."

"Okay kids," Kirstin interrupted, she was amused but decided to play mediator, "Let's be nice and leave Ryo alone."

"Yes," Sage spoke up, a smirk prominent on his face, "After all, I think Elayne will kill him if he's late."

The room was immediately filled with uproarious laughter at this, and it was easy to tell that the Ronin leader was doing his best not to cave into his sudden desire to strangle the swordsman.

Ryo let out a breath, tilted his head, and coolly inquired, "Was that supposed to be funny? Or, did you just want to share your personal experience with us?"

A lot of 'oh-ing' sprang up at the comment, and Sage was glaring angrily at Wildfire's bearer. The young man merely grinned in response, and walked out of the house.

* * *

Kayura had been waiting in the lounge, reclining on one of the sofas, but sprang to life the moment she heard the doors open. She was grinning as the Wildfire Ronin hesitantly entered the area.

Seeing the look on her face, Ryo let out a groan, "Please don't start."

The woman started sniggering, "Aw, poor baby! Were they picking on you?"

"Like you would not believe," he mumbled once more fussing with his shirt collar.

The Lady Ancient chuckled, "Loosen up a little, and don't be so paranoid. I had no intentions of teasing you about tonight."

"Oh really?" The Wildfire Ronin didn't buy that line at all.

She gave a slight nod, saying with a smirk, "Yes. I was leaning more towards teasing you about the 'what' aspect."

The fact that he turned about four different shades of red within one minute, told her that he had definitely caught the implied meaning in that sentence.

"Kayura!" Ryo could only gape at her in astonishment.

She gave a pout, protesting, "But I didn't say anything bad yet!"

"I don't care, I know for a fact I don't want to hear it," Wildfire's bearer quickly responded.

"Oh you're such a wimp," the Lady Ancient sourly complained, saying with a sigh, "Your 'girlfriend' is coming; one of the resident's decided to abduct her for a few minutes."

"She isn't my girlfriend," Ryo stated, leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes, "And okay fine."

A few minutes later Elayne walked into the room ranting and raving in Italian, accent quite thick with disgust. What it all boiled down to in English or Japanese? She was beyond pissed.

Kayura bit her lip to keep from laughing, and walked in front of the girl, "Now Layne, stop swearing."

The girl sighed heavily through her nose, "Idiots, every last one of them; in between these Estate residents and you warriors? I am more then tempted to throw in my towel and become a full-fledged alcoholic."

Kayura couldn't help herself, she just started laughing, and shaking her head as the girl went back to raving in Italian.

Elayne then pleaded, "That was a bad omen if I've ever had one. Can't you go with Rekka instead? Better yet, go out with Rowen!"

Now the woman was sniggering, not even bothering to acknowledge the stab, "Oh no, you're not getting out of this one."

"Kuso![1]" The girl unhappily swore, "Back to the drawing board then."

Kayura shook her head, saying, "Don't think so, he's already here."

"Maledizione![2]" The girl swore louder adding in complaint, "You should've said that sooner, Kay!"

Elayne now whirled around; mildly surprised to see how well Ryo had dressed. He certainly looked sharp even if he was only wearing black dress-pants and an off-white dress shirt.

However she couldn't help but smirk at the look on his face, it being a mixture of pure shock and confusion. Kayura had certainly managed to find a get-up that would cause jaws to drop, and turn heads.

Granted it was nothing more than a burgundy belle-sleeved top (with a lower neckline than Elayne was comfortable with), and a simple black pencil-skirt, but it surprised Ryo how much it brought out her features.

"Picture time!" Kayura happily chirped, as she magically produced a camera out of thin air; actually she had been hiding it in the pocket of her jacket coat which was currently laying on the sofa.

"W-what?" Ryo managed to get out, shaking off his shock.

Kayura gave a devious grin, "It's known as blackmail for later use."

The girl rolled her eyes, quickly seizing Ryo's arm, and leaning her head against his shoulder, Kayura then snapped a shot.

Elayne then asked in a bored tone, "Do you want one of us kissing and making out, or do we do that for the next time?"

"Elayne!" Ryo hissed out, face starting to turn red.

"Oh careful now _lover_," she murmured to him in a sultry voice, "Or you'll have red-face instead of red-eye in the next picture."

Kayura started howling in laughter at this, while Ryo merely let out a low groan, as he stated, "You're as bad as Kayura."

"Nah," She grinned up at him, a glint of mischief in her eyes, "I'm a hell of a lot worse."

The Wildfire Ronin closed his eyes and let out a sigh, it was going to be a **_LONG_** night. This would be the last time he allowed himself to have a bright idea.

* * *

_A/N: Three chapter update for the long absence_

_ Kuso= Damn, ish Japanese_

_ Maledizione= It's literal translation is 'curse' and sometimes it is translated as damn. The word itself is used to show regret. Elayne likes Ryo, but it doesn't mean she wants to date him. Sure An-chan sure *jumps back when Elayne hisses at her* _


	26. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

**Written: 2007**

**Rewritten/Edited: May 8, 2008**

The Ronin of Wildfire had to give the young woman next to him one thing, the minute they were out of the others sights she always backed off and gave him his space. Of course, it fell very close to Elayne ignoring his existence entirely.

Ryo really couldn't keep thinking of her as a 'girl' now, especially with the fact that she _was_ aging. Even if she hadn't pointed out the fact to them during the Nether Realm, they would have picked up on the changes in her appearance. The girlish qualities that she had were now gone, to the point she looked the twenty she was supposed to be.

It was about time though, being forever a teenager must have annoyed the hell out of the millennia old Senshi; especially when all the other warriors got to age and she didn't. Well, that one thing had now changed and he had to wonder exactly how much else would.

The Ronin Leader cast a side-ways glance at her, sighed through his nose, and turned his attention back to the road, "Why do you do this all the time?"

"Do what?" Elayne murmured eyes turning away from her window, and onto him.

"Try and humiliate me in front of the others, go so far as flirting with me publicly, and then the minute we're alone ignore me completely," Wildfire's bearer stated in a cool voice, he briefly glanced over at her, "I want to know, why?"

She chuckled a little and shrugged, "I don't know, I can't help it sometimes. I know it annoys them when I don't react the way they want me to, and I know how you get bugged by my attitude and need a reprieve."

Suddenly she got an evil idea, and leaned in close to him whispering, "I'm sorry I'm ignoring you, would kissing you make it better?"

Ryo felt a little warm under his collar, he tightened the grip on the steering wheel with his right hand, but with the left pushed her back into her seat, "You're unreal, did you know that?"

She was smirking at him now, eyes sparkling with mischief, "Hey, Hot Shot, this was your idea not mine. As I recall, nowhere in this deal did it say I had to actually be nice to you or _behave_."

He would've retorted, except for the fact that they had arrived at the restaurant; he carefully parked the car reminding himself to be more civil towards her than she would be towards him.

* * *

Supper was rather uneventful, considering Elayne had received such a 'bad omen' earlier. It was spent in light conversation about various topics, starting off with what he had been doing with himself for the past several years (besides fighting Talpa).

Really, in all this time neither of them had been able to sit down and just talk about the 'normal' aspect of their lives. What had occurred all those years they had been apart…It wasn't that they didn't want to talk about it, but the fate of the world tended to override one's everyday life.

The meal had been spent reminiscing on their pasts, and then it spanned to include the other four Ronins. It hadn't surprised either of them that the four young men had intruded into their thoughts, for them it was as normal as breathing.

Elayne had chuckled though, bringing in the fact that the guys had managed to interrupt the evening, even without their knowledge. He had merely shaken his head at her, the slightest of smiles on his lips, but when he caught the look on her eyes it had faded. Granted it was gone, the minute he tried to look again, but he swore he had seen sorrow in there…Regret perhaps?

She had gone quiet after that, only answering queries with yes or no responses, that had irked him a little bit, but he had also known immediately something was wrong. It was always his first hint to when there was trouble afoot with her; she had always been that way.

The two were outside now, leisurely walking back to the car the cool night air slightly refreshing compared to the warm and stuff restaurant. He watched the young woman with some puzzlement, noting that she kept closing her eyes and sighing, and also the fact that she was walking with less purpose than normal.

"I should kill you," Elayne mumbled all of a sudden, opening her eyes.

Ryo frowned at her, asking with a raised brow, "What did I do this time?"

"You," she tried to glare at him in annoyance, but this was more in play than in anything else, "Got me drunk."

He gave a roll of his vivid-blue eyes, "You're **_more_** than past legal age, and had barely half a glass of wine!"

Elayne let out a chuckle, stating in slight humor, "It doesn't take much; alcohol numbs what senses I have that actually work."

"Probably your common sense, the only sense you actually have," the Wildfire Ronin grumbled under his breath, thus earning a severe rasp in his head from her.

"I'm tipsy," she growled at him, eyes narrowing, "Not _deaf_!"

Ryo looked at her and stated in a taunting tone, "Could have fooled me."

Elayne let out another growl her one eye slightly starting to twitch. She was fully prepared to throttle him, but his sudden inquiry diffused her immediately.

"When we were talking about the guys before, what is it that you were upset about?"

She came to a full halt, turned and looked at him, "What makes you think I was?"

"Because you're still upset," he told her matter-of-factly, "I know the look I saw, and your current mood is giving you away. Layne, just answer me, please?"

The young woman let out a forlorn sigh, "I-it's a bunch of things Ryo. I don't think I could explain it to you if I tried, half the time I don't even know."

"Are you afraid they don't trust you?" the Wildfire Ronin gently pried, and catching the look in her eyes he was aware he had correctly guessed. "An, Sage and Kento have _never_ been this defensive of you. They got mad at _me_ when I tried to point out the fact you were loitering about as Universe."

Elayne shook her head, "Ya, they're cute that way." She then started to walk again, perhaps a little more dejectedly than before.

Ryo was frowning now and ran a few things through his head, trying to put it all in place. A realization dawned on him and he cursed at himself then he jogged forward catching her by the arm.

She gave a surprised yelp at his action, but halted refusing to look up at him, hair effectively hiding her face.

He let out a sigh and tilted her head up, giving her a small smile, "Well see, you're human after all."

She rolled her eyes, and pushed his hand away, wiping her eyes on her sleeve; only he could leave her in tears. That gave her only further reasoning to throttle him in his sleep.

"And that's your entire problem, isn't it?" The Wildfire Ronin gently pressed, "You're used to being able to remove yourself from your emotions and now you can't. But no matter what Elayne, we trust you. Remember what Seiji promised?"

A small smile had formed on her face and she gave a nod, she remembered all too well. The swordsman had promised during the first lifetime that no matter what came, they would always trust her.

Ryo grinned, "And you can't tell me that they haven't kept it. Why did they trust a stranger when she was protecting them from Kali? We know better than to trust a figure that looms in the shadows, and yet we trusted you completely."

"We made a promise, and I guess somewhere in the back of our minds we remembered it. They still trust you; as do I," the Ronin of Wildfire assured her, then said with a smirk, "It's just, well like Artemis commented, you're very intimidating when you're pissed."

She managed a laugh at this, and shook her head at him, "You just like to mess with my emotions, Hot shot. I should strangle you for this one."

The young man put an arm around her shoulder, "I'm sorry; but you're doing what you always do, you're holding it in. How many lifetimes, and languages do I have to tell you in before you understand that I'm here for you?"

"You know me," Elayne leaned against him, suddenly feeling very drained, "I'm too stubborn for everyone's good."

Ryo chuckled a little, guiding her back to the car, "Yeah, I'll give you that," He decided to change the topic confident that the issue was now resolved; "It's still early, any place you want to go, before we head back?"

The girl was quiet for a few minutes, "Actually," She murmured quietly, "There is one place….but I don't know if you'll want to go or not."

"Where?" The Ronin leader curiously inquired, somewhat unprepared for her answer…

There was a pleading look in her eyes, as she murmured, "Home."

* * *

He still couldn't believe what her answer had been; it had slightly startled and surprised him. Then again he should believe it; Elayne always did things that ended up throwing him for a complete loop. Universe had been just as bad, actually she had been worse.

Ryo now drove down the all-familiar route to him, for perhaps what was the first time in several months. He let himself relax since he knew these roads so very well.

The Wildfire Ronin stole a glance at the young woman in the passenger seat, before turning his eyes back to the road ahead. The minute he had said yes to her plea, Elayne had quickly kissed him on the cheek and got out a thank you before going silent.

"You're driving me insane," he suddenly mumbled in annoyance, glancing at her again to see if he had acquired a reaction.

She snorted at this statement, coolly stating, "That's a long trip off a short pier."

He felt his cheek's burn at the remark, and grumbled out, "Can you please decide on whether to like me or hate me? I'm getting tired of your mood swings between the two."

"Oh but _darling_," she cooed to him not willing to pass up the chance to annoy him, "I'm in between those two points, don't you know?"

Ryo ran a hand over his face, "Remind me to never let you touch an alcoholic beverage again, your sarcastic nature gets worse when you drink."

Elayne laughed gleefully, "Oh what a smart guy you are! May I remind a certain Ronin of Wildfire, this was _his_ idea."

"You've reminded me every hour, on the hour," he gritted out at her, "If you've got a point to make, just state it already!"

She backed off immediately, eyeing him with a frown, "Are you all right?"

"No," Ryo responded sourly, "I have a migraine."

"Sorry," Elayne quickly apologized stopping with her play, "You should've said something sooner."

He rolled his eyes at her, grumbling, "Not like it would've shut you up any."

She gave a 'hmph' and went back to staring out the window, saying loud enough for him to hear, "You _started_ it."

He would've retorted to that, but he went silent and slowed the car down, not that surprised when she got out before he had gone to a complete stop.

"I still can't believe she considers this home," Ryo murmured to himself, eyeing the cabin.

With a sigh, he got out of the car; at least the night hadn't been as horrible as it could have been. He ridiculed himself it wasn't over just yet; better not jinx it, especially with his luck.

* * *

The cabin was starting to show its age, rain and sunlight had worn down the once bright brown boards and new foliage had sprung up. The once young pine trees were thicker now, taller as well.

Had it been that long, since she had last stood here? Ten years, yes it had been a long while indeed.

"It looks different, yet the feel to this place is still the same," Elayne mused to herself out loud.

Ryo let out a chuckle, "I'm dreading when it warms up; got a lot of gardening to do." He was referring to the plants that had sprung up on the walk-way; he hadn't had a lot of time last year to foil with maintenance on the cabin and boy did it show.

"If you actually do a chore, it'll be the end of the world!" She laughed at him, recalling all the times he had refused to do his chores to do more tolerable things instead.

"Oh and as if you were perfect," he teased back at her.

She was still laughing, and tossed out, "At least I made sure everything I had to do was done, _before_ he walked through the door."

Ryo had to give up; he had him there, "Want to go in?"

"Could we?" She seemed to brighten at the mere suggestion of this.

He merely chuckled at her, shaking his head in mirth, "Sure."

It was hard to put into words, exactly how dazed the Wildfire Ronin was when the girl had slipped out her keychain and inserted her cabin key into the lock.

The action left him utterly dumfounded, and as they now entered the living room he found himself asking, "Why didn't you come before this?"

She had been dreading the question, and let out a sigh, "You needed your space, and Kaosu agreed with me. We also thought you didn't need distractions from the task ahead, and I would've been that…"

"I had friends at school that I had to figure out an excuse as to explain my absence; the other guys did as well! How would you have been a constant distraction to me, or to any of us?" Ryo demanded with a frown.

The young woman sighed, trying to carefully pick her words in the hopes to help him understand better, "I was a lot closer to you guys, than any of your friends. You all would've been worried about my safety, and you, Ryo," she gave a small grin, "Had enough to worry about without me being around."

"But Layne, we could've tried to patch things up years ago," the young man murmured out.

"But we've still managed to 'patch things up' regardless of that," Elayne pointed out failing to see why he was being so adamant about this. She sighed again, "'Sides, I was never a very brave person, you know. Rash and thick-headed sure, I did get up the nerve to come around here, once or twice after I got back from the States…But you weren't here, maybe it was just as well."

"I wish I had been here," he let out a sigh, and placed his arm around her shoulder, "I know it may not seem like it, but I missed you. You've always been there to listen to me, and I missed having that."

She snorted out a laugh, "Please, don't go all mushy on me, it's _so_ corny."

"You make a mean drunk," Ryo retorted in annoyance.

Elayne gave him a look, trying hard to hide the smile on her face but failing to do so, "What happened to the "it was only a half-glass of wine" defense?"

The Ronin of Wildfire let out a groan, "Just for fifteen minutes, could you and I _not_ argue?"

The young woman laughed and shook her head at him, before throwing her arms around him in a hug, "Thanks, Ry. I had a good time, and actually enjoyed myself."

"But we won't tell the others that," the Ronin Leader finished for her with a grin, having been slightly taken aback by the hug before returning it.

Elayne smirked up at him, "Unless you want them teasing you even _more_." At the awful face he made she could only chortle, "Yeah, what I thought."

"Heh," suddenly the Ronin of Wildfire snapped his attention to the window, his eyes narrowing. She sensed it too, her gaze followed his but she couldn't sense anything.

Ryo was frowning, his eyes going half-lidded as he tried to reach out further to see if he could pick up what had just been there. All of a sudden the pair were out of the house, the Ronin Leader in subarmor the young woman in Senshi form (having no desire to try and fight in a dress with heels).

Thanos had a rather amused look on his face, as he remarked, "Now isn't that cute. The Leader and Secondary Guardian, what an interesting couple."

"We're having a private party Frosty, buzz off," Universe flatly stated.

The Ronin of Wildfire raised an eyebrow, "Frosty?"

"I'd call him Ice Queen, but Kento gave that title to Kali," she gave a loose shrug of her shoulders, before turning her attention back to Thanos. _'Even though, he's more of a Queen than she was.'_

Ryo mentally chortled at that.

The ice demon was looking at the pair through half-lidded eyes upon the mentioning of his sister's name. To him, that wound was still fresh and did not need to be picked at by anyone, least of all the Secondary Guardian. Neither she, nor Wildfire, saw the blade he left lying on the ground.

"I was hoping for a fight," Thanos' tone was one flecked with mock disappointment, "But if all you can do is sit there and call me names…I guess I am out of luck."

Ryo's face was filled with boredom, with a slight eye-roll he summoned a substantial amount of flame to his palm, and tossed it at Thanos, hitting the ice demon square in the chest.

Thanos gave an exclamation of surprise, quickly putting the flame out, his features showed the substantial amount of shock he was currently in…And even Universe was gaping at her charge.

"The Lady said to leave, take a hike," the Ronin Leader said in a calm tone, "Unless you want to make like the snowman, and _melt_."

Thanos wisely took the hint, simply because he had done everything he had come out here to do.

Universe was scowling, "He doesn't show up without a reason. So, what did he want?"

"We could spend the entire night guessing," Ryo shrugged his shoulders and willed away his subarmor. "And still come no closer to an exact answer."

"Ya, seems to be the way it goes," she admitted letting go of her power, and then immediately falling to her knees.

"Elayne?"

She placed a hand to her forehead and tried to clear her vision, and then forcefully shook herself, placing a hand down, right on top of the blade that had been left behind.

"Ouch," she grumbled placing a hand over top of the now bloodied one; her eyes went a little wide when she watched the object explode into ash. "Oh _great_. So they know."

"Know what?" Ryo asked sounding concerned, "And are you okay?"

"I'm fine," the young woman murmured continuing to remain in her kneeling position, clutching her bleeding hand. "My transformer has been acting up, that was their way of letting me know they're aware."

"They're keeping tabs on you too," the Wildfire Ronin helped her to her feet, "Come on, let's get that cleaned up before the crystal heals it over."

Elayne gave only a nod in response to this, and allowed herself to be led back inside. With it being so late, the two would not bother to make the trek back it'd be safer to wait until morning. Besides, it'd leave the others guessing.


	27. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

**New as of May 8, 2008**

Thanos reappeared in one of the many underground chambers and exited said room. His steel-green flecked eyes scanned the tunnel as he walked down it, but the Raikken were off causing their own mischief. He really cared little about what the blundering fools did so long as they did not interfere with what he was doing.

A bored look was on his face as he entered the room Akemliek tended to frequent at this time of night, he gave a nod to the being before falling into the chair. Said chair in quite a state of disrepair to the point of almost being nonexistent, but hey when you were a demon you took what you could.

"Well?" Akemliek inquired reading through a rather old volume, the binding on it was quite worn, to the point where the lettering on the outside was no longer discernable.

"I planted the dagger, the poison should take affect within the next few days," the ice demon yawned out. "Do you really think this will work?"

"It will," the being assured him, as he closed the book. "Shinshou did us a favor, with the memories lost from this life now available to the Ronin and the Senshi aware of Universe's involvement in the same areas, getting them to recall the rest will now be easier."

Thanos was frowning, "I still don't see how this is supposed to help."

"Ah, you do not know their past selves, and I do," Akemliek said calmly, "They only remember their pasts when they are ready, now they are ready. But, in order to ensure that it happens in a timely fashion having Universe ill will allow the memories to return sooner."

The being placed the book down, and turn his near black eyes to Thanos, "The armors will take down the final block due to her being in a state where she can't sense anything, once that block is gone the rest is up to the warriors. You simply gave them the nudge that needed to be given."

"I certainly hope they give you the fight you're looking for after all the trouble we have gone through," the ice demon remarked. "It'd be a waste otherwise."

"That it would," Akemliek admitted with a nod, "But I have a feeling, that we will not have wasted our time. They are far more powerful this time, and with full memory they will most certainly give me the fight I have been waiting for."

* * *

**Next Day**

Of all the days Ryo had to pick to take Elayne out, he had to pick the night before the monthly Senshi and Ronin get together. Though all of them had to wait for Akemliek to get free, they had decided to meet once a month (more often if there was trouble), talk about non-normal issues, then go out somewhere to eat and have a bit of fun.

The plan for today was to have a light chat, and then head out to Kento's family restaurant and spend the day loitering about Yokohama. Basically, when Elayne and Ryo actually drove back to the mansion they would have to deal with _everyone's _teasing about the date.

Of course, those stationed in the living room were a little more than surprised when she and Ryo came in dressed in casual clothes, instead of what they'd been wearing the night before. The young woman sat down on the sofa and stretched closing her eyes.

"Where were you?" Sekhmet inquired, particularly baffled by the pairs change in outfit.

Elayne opened an eye, "I was expecting that comment from Sage, or Kento. Not you."

Both young men scowled at hearing this, but nonetheless wanted to know the answer to the question. The young woman merely gave a shrug of her shoulders to compensate for 'ask Ryo.'

Ryo also shrugged his shoulders as well, taking a page out of her book and giving a vague answer, "Nowhere important."

Kento crossed his arms in front of his chest, not happy with that explanation at all. A pointed look was being cast at the Ronin Leader, by the blond swordsman.

Cye merely rolled his sea-green eyes, though he could not help but be amused by the two and how they were acting. Course, it was far more amusing to him that Elayne had even gone _out_ with Ryo.

"You two should give it a rest," Rowen complained, and then called out, "Double jump."

"Hey!" Cye narrowed his eyes at the archer, looking back to their game, "You can't do that."

The Ronin of Strata had a smug look on his face, "Course I can, this is Checkers, Cye. It says in the rulebook that multiple jumps are allowed."

"Whatever," the Water Ronin grumbled, quickly turning his eyes back to his friends.

"Thanks for the advice Ro," Sage had paused to listen to their conversation, now he was giving that _look_ again, "Ryo…"

"If you _have_ to know," Elayne butted in, "We'll tell you. Sad when your love lives are so bad you have to harass your poor leader about his nonexistent one."

"Eh?" the three chorused at her, the young woman bit down a laugh but just barely.

Cye took the advantage of Strata's bearer being distracted and made his move, "Triple jump."

"Huh?" Rowen looked back to the board, somewhat dazed; he frowned, "That's wasn't very nice Cye."

"You left yourself open for that one mate," the auburn-haired man beamed, reluctantly directing his attention back to the other four.

The wink Elayne gave to Ryo was the only signal he needed to go ahead and fabricate their evening.

"After a very dull supper, we went to a couple of wild parties," the Ronin Leader commented with a slight smirk; watching with great satisfaction as Sage's face went white.

"Got into a late night movie," Elayne had a thoughtful look on her face, trying to come up with something else. But what would really get them?

Kento weakly leaned back against the sofa for support, not quite sure if he should believe a word that he was hearing…After all, he knew his mei mei quite well, and she was good at playing practical jokes.

"Hit a few bars," the two said, simultaneously; both managing to pull off sounding dead serious.

Moments of silence followed, but Ryo was the first one to cave into his laughter.

"Sage…The look on your face…"

The Ronin of Halo gave his leader a seething glare, conveying the fact he wasn't amused at all.

"Is priceless!" Sekhmet finished laughing uncontrollably.

Elayne and Ryo exchanged high-fives with each other, ignoring the duel death glares being sent their way from Kento and Sage. The Ronin of Trust chortled as he took Rowen's last checker off the board.

"So, really, what did you do?" Kayura queried having entered the room, hearing the commotion.

"We went out, we talked about you oddballs, then we went to the cabin and because I have not grown more than half an inch since I was there last, my old clothes still fit," the Secondary Guardian said with a bored yawn. "What did you think? We were going to get a hotel room, and see how much 'wild' is in Wildfire?"

"ELAYNE!" came the chorus of shrieks, Ryo's voice being the loudest.

She gave a snort, "You people are still way too easy to get at."

She got to her feet now, "I need aspirin. Where are the Senshi anyway? I thought they were supposed to be here?"

"We are," Mina cheerfully brought in as she and the other Inner Senshi came into the house. The Outer Senshi were quick to follow behind them.

Amara was smirking, "Have a _good_ time?"

"Beats hanging out with you guys all day," came the retort from where the young woman was rummaging in the cabinets looking for the medication. She found the bottle opened it, popped two pills and swallowed them dry. Elayne replaced the cap, and then put the bottle away.

"Stop looking at me like that," the Ronin Leader told his teammates before sitting down in the chair, "We didn't do _anything_."

"Wait a minute," Cale interrupted having been lurking at the back of the room with Dais, "You mean, you didn't even kiss her?"

Ryo only moaned in response, and tried to sink into the chair. He was hoping to become one with the fabric in order to avoid having to deal with people who had this inability to mind their own business.

"Seriously?" Callista asked with both eyebrows raised. "Geez! You're kidding me."

Elayne rolled her eyes skyward, checking her watch, "Hey, shouldn't we be heading out?" She began to walk for the door, noting she was getting looks and glares, "What?"

"Oh come on Elayne," Rei commented with a smirk, "You didn't let him get in one kiss?"

Ryo moaned again and buried his face in his hands and tried to sink further into the chair. Honestly, why him? Why the hell couldn't someone else get picked on for a change?

Kayura started tsking the Secondary Guardian, "You could've at least let him kiss you on the cheek!"

The Wildfire Ronin, looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder…He wasn't happy when he saw the grin on Sage's face.

"Poor Ryo, no wonder," the swordsman's grin widened. The Halo Ronin now had reason to be amused, and was going to put it to good use as payback for the earlier fabrication.

Ryo glowered at his friend, roughly brushing his hands aside; he then proceeded to level a death glare at him. Sage merely chuckled, completely unconcerned with the look he was getting.

"Oh he just didn't want to make a public scene," Dais stated sniggering loudly.

"That or Elayne threatened to kill him if he dared try it," Vanessa jeered.

"Minna," Elayne said calmly, "We need to go." She could care less that they were picking fun at her and Wildfire, she just wanted to get the day over with…And of course everyone just had to make that harder.

However, everyone continued to ignore her…Anubis shook his head, "Wildfire, we'll just have to work on your skills when it comes to women."

Ryo's response was something that sounded like a groan and whimper crossed together; and Elayne tried very hard not to burst out laughing right then. The other warriors laughed for her, and then began to make comments amongst each other about the whole 'date' and why Ryo couldn't get a kiss out of her.

This really didn't bother Elayne; ordinarily she would've joined in the fun, but she felt tired…She was beginning to think that the blade had been dipped with a poison. It wasn't enough to kill her, but enough to make her exhausted and with her luck she'd probably get ill from it.

Besides, if they kept this up they were going to miss the train and have to catch a later one. Plus, everyone was ignoring her…That was not necessarily a safe or smart thing to do; never had been.

She studied Ryo for a minute, and felt rather sorry for the poor guy. This kind of talk was really making Ryo uncomfortable. He just wasn't used to having to deal with the whole world knowing about his affections for a person…Elayne frowned a little, when had she decided he had affections for her?

Great, it really had _been_ a poisoned blade. Life was just wonderful that way. Oh well, it was treating her semi-better than it was Ryo. Right now he looked pretty miserable.

"They're cute together," Lita offered with a grin.

Aurora nodded in agreement, "Oh yeah, most definitely."

"Would you guys quit it already?" Kirstin demanded in annoyance; that was the peace-keeper and protector for you. She was getting irritated that they were picking on Ryo this relentlessly, a little was fine, but this was a tad overkill.

"Chill Kirs," the Hardrock Ronin told her wrapping his arm around her shoulders, "He needs the _exposure_."

This sent up another round of laughter, and Kirstin couldn't help but laugh at it too.

Elayne meanwhile was silently steaming; they were really starting to piss her off now…If they missed that train, she was going to be several charges short.

"Ya know," Rowen drawled out looking to Elayne, "_You_ could have kissed him."

"**All right!** _That is** it**!_" She declared, eyes landing on the Ronin of Wildfire.

The young woman stalked over to the Ronin Leader, who had stopped trying to fade into the fabric and sat up straighter most likely trying to form some sort of comment to save his life.

Everyone in the living room was sniggering or chortling, waiting to watch her flatten Ryo. Since (in their minds) he had started this whole mess by asking her out on the date in the first place, thus he would now be earning his just reward.

The Wildfire Ronin let out another low moan, and thought over what he could possibly say in his defense...And whether or not he could get the words out before she decked him.

He took in a deep breath, and slowly looked up at her, but before he could open his mouth she did something that threw everyone for a loop...She leaned forward and kissed him.

Blue-eyes widened in shock, _'What the…?'_

_'Oh please,' _she cut him off, amusement in her voice, _'You've wanted this for a while. So, you might as well shut-up and enjoy it.'_

_'I hate you,' _Ryo grumbled, before kissing her back.

Elayne pulled back very pleased with herself now; she smirked as a nice blush had settle onto Ryo's face…_'Yep, he never saw that one coming.'_

"Now then," she turned around facing the others, who were looking at her in shock and amazement, "Are you all happy now? Good, do you think we can get going then? I have a lot of other work to do and want to get this day over with."

No response was made to her at all; none of the warriors could believe what had just taken place.

Elayne happily made her way over to the door and opened it, and before she ducked out cheerfully said, "Oh yeah, some of you…" She thought about it, "No, I lie. _Most_ of you now owe me yen. You can place it on my desk; I'll get to it later."

"I-" Kento blinked in total shock, "Oi, mei mei wait a _minute!" _He and the Ronin of Halo were out the door not more than a minute after she was.

"I don't get paid enough for this," Ryo said in complaint before getting to his feet, and leaving before anyone else could say anything. The others shook themselves from their stupor and quickly headed out the door. Well, at least they had something to talk about for the next few weeks.

…Of course, they had no way of knowing that very soon they'd have _other_ things to talk about…


	28. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

**New as of May 8, 2008**

"So, are you going to go on another date with Ryo?" Kayura teasingly asked her fellow guardian.

Elayne gave a snort, "You go out with Rowen first, and maybe I'll think about dating him again in the _next_ lifetime."

"Oh harsh," Hotaru commented with a wince, as she walked with the pair. "If you keep saying things like that people are going to start to think you don't _love_ him anymore."

"Hold it back up, when did I _ever_ say that?" the young woman demanded of her little sister, violet eyes narrowed.

The youngest of the Senshi smirked, "Oh you don't have to say it nee-san, we can see it in your face. Can't we Kay-san?"

"That we can," the Lady Ancient cheerfully quipped before laughing at the look of pure murder on Elayne's face.

The Secondary Guardian was quick to turn the attention off of her, saying smugly, "And what does that say for you and blue-boy hm?" Before glancing at the eighteen-year-old Hotaru, "Or a certain Seasonal you've become _awfully_ close to lately?"

Kayura scowled and did not bother to offer that with a retort, mainly because she was taken by surprise at Hotaru's reaction.

Hotaru flushed pink, and quickly turned her head away, "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Uh huh _sure_ you don't," Elayne said with a smirk, "As such I'm certain Trista-tachi won't know what I'm talking about either."

"Don't you dare tell them!" the Senshi of Saturn shrieked chasing after Elayne who had started to laugh and jog away.

Kayura gave a shake of her blue-head slowly following after the pair. The large group had split up no more than an hour ago, everyone going off with someone they normally were unable to be around.

What had amused Elayne, up until the point she and Hotaru had steered the conversation towards "the date," was the fact that Kento and Kirstin had gone off together, and it appeared that a few other Ronin (Elemental and Seasonal alike) had vanished with a Senshi.

Suddenly the Lady Ancient became aware of the fact she was being followed, and she halted turning her head to look at her pursuer.

"Rowen?" she blinked a few times in confusion.

The archer gave a grin, "Sorry, didn't mean to come across as a stalker. Just wanted to get away from the ogling."

"You just can't handle being drooled over, can you?" Kayura snorted down a laugh, and waited for the young man to fall into step next to her before resuming her walk.

"I feel like a piece of meat," the Strata Ronin grimaced, raising an eyebrow at Elayne who had stopped ahead of them and caught Hotaru in a headlock.

"Prime cut?" the Secondary Guardian cheerfully queried before saying to the small Senshi, "Now, you take it back imouto."

"How can you deny true love?" the Senshi of Saturn queried before chortling at the look of abject horror on her sister's face.

Elayne's eye twitched as she harshly rubbed her knuckles against the girl's head, "You little snot!"

Kayura and Rowen both laughed at the pair, and the young woman finally gave up, settling to cross her arms over her chest and sulk.

"I'm trading in my henshin pen for a lifetime supply of rice wine," Elayne announced before she resumed her walk.

Hotaru, Kayura, and Rowen could only helplessly laugh at hearing this statement, leaving the Secondary Guardian to roll her eyes.

* * *

**Much Later**

"It's always good to get out, and always wonderful to come home," the Seasonal of Winter announced as he walked into the Shinwako mansion and nearly threw himself on the floor. His feet were absolutely _killing_ him, of course after walking that much it couldn't be helped.

"We're considering this home now?" an amused Kayura queried as she and the others trailed into the house.

Cale gave a loose shrug of his shoulders, "It's better than nothing."

Kento flopped down in a chair and leaned back into it, "Man, what a day. Glad Mama wasn't expecting a big crowd today."

"Yeah, simply because we make up a small province," the Seasonal of Summer snorted out as he rolled his eye.

Cye merely shook his head and stretched out his arms, "Always nice to see them."

"Always better to see them leave?" Sekhmet queried with a grin.

"That's not nice," Anubis reprimanded his comrade.

Elayne let out a strangled noise in the back of her throat, "Anubis, that is _not_ what he meant. And you weren't even there the entire time."

"Yes, just _where_ did you vanish to anyway?" the Ronin of Wildfire asked with a raise eyebrow.

The Spring Seasonal coughed into his hand, "Nowhere. Ah, so what did I miss, aside from everyone over analyzing your date?"

"Oh just a few of your buddies making out with girls," Ryo retorted saying to the looks he was getting, "As in Senshi."

"What?" Kayura blinked, "And I missed this?"

"You and Rowen were too busy in your dark corner," the Ronin of Hardrock assured her before chortling at the look on her face and quickly ducking the punch she threw his way, only to get caught and trip over Rowen's foot.

There was a slight twitch to Rowen's eye, "If you guys don't quit with that, we're going to have _problems._ Capiche?"

Any serious response to that was lost as everyone in the living room proceeded to burst out laughing. To this the Ronin of Strata simply growled, and leveled a hateful look at all of them.

Sage simply bit down a yawn, cast a glance at the clock, "Well, I don't know about anyone else, but I need sleep."

"Oh, were you making out with someone too Sage?" the Ronin of Trust queried, then gaped when the swordsman merely, asked, "Jealous, Cye?"

"Good shot, Halo," the Winter Seasonal chuckled after his rival, who merely waved off the praise and disappeared up the stairs. Within a few minutes, everyone else had headed off to bed…Except Ryo. His eyes were on Elayne who had sat down in a chair and said nothing more; she had not even acknowledged the others as they left.

The Ronin of Wildfire cleared his throat and her eyes opened, "I talked with Serena earlier. It seems that she and the Senshi have been seeing snippets of the past lives, too. They just weren't affected like the guys were."

"Makes sense," the young woman admitted in a quiet tone, wearily getting to her feet. "The memories are bound to return, and it's better that it happens on its own."

She knew that by this point she was running a fever and a high one at that…Her vision was slightly blurry, but she forced her eyes to refocus. Her skin had become pale, and sweat had started to trickle from her brow, but she was clever enough to hide all of this from him so that he never even noticed.

"Elayne, they need to remember," Ryo said a frown on his face, "I know you felt it, something is coming…And, in order to deal with it they are going to need their memories. They won't be able to cope otherwise."

"I know they all need to remember Ryo," her voice sounded tired, "What do you expect me to do?"

"Stop holding the armors back," the Leader of the Ronin Warriors told her, the tone was not one of demand but one of imploration. "You told them to back off and leave it alone, and they won't do anything more. You have to let it go Elayne, stop hindering them."

Agitation leaked through into her voice, as she snapped back a reply, "It isn't the armors place to let the others remember! Anymore than it's my place to keep the memories from them."

Her eyes narrowed into thin slits, "How can you accuse me of doing such a thing, Ryo?"

"Isn't that what you are doing?" Ryo demanded of her, "I'm sorry but I get the general impression you don't want them to remember at _all_."

"How can you say that?" Elayne was both angry and upset now, and she could not keep calm due to the poison currently toying with her system. It was just too much stress for her body to deal with. "You all died Ryo, those deaths may mean nothing to you but they sure as hell mean something to me!"

She bit down on the inside of her lip and drew blood, continuing, "I watched you die, and I felt it...I _still_ feel that loss because it doesn't matter if you get the memories back or not, you're the same people, but you're not."

Her voice had started out strong then started to waver, and now it cracked as she told him, "The people I knew and cared about are dead, and they can _never_ come back."

"E-" Ryo began, but it was too late she slipped back into a shadow and teleported herself up the stairs to her room. He let out a forlorn sigh, guilt starting to seep in, but he shook it off.

It was unavoidable. He had needed to tell her what he did, and while he had not meant to upset her like that…Perhaps, it was just as well. The others needed to remember, it was far too important for them not too.

The Ronin of Wildfire made it to his room after doing a light scan to check on everyone else to make sure they were indeed all right. Ever since he had figured out how to use that ability, he'd been putting it to use. Now it had simply become routine.

"Sorry, Elayne," he mumbled out sending it across to her mental line, not too surprised when he didn't get an answer. The Wildfire Ronin gave a sad shake of his head, before crawling into the bed and promptly falling asleep.

* * *

The Secondary Guardian had been minimally upset, but her real reason for leaving was due to the fact the poison had now hit her full force. She gripped the sink in front of her with one hand, while she tended to the fresh gash on her arm. It was the only way her body could get rid of poison; she literally had to bleed it out.

Elayne closed her eyes to avoid seeing the world around her spin, and took in several deep breaths. She then reopened her eyes and allowed the wound to heal over…The blood that had come out was nearly black.

_'Are you all right?'_

"Fine," the young woman breathed out, splashing cold water on her face. "I just need sleep, my body will get rid of it completely that way."

_'What did they poison you for?'_

"It's a warning Simoria, Akemliek knew my pendant was weak, and I'm certain Thanos told him what happened when we fought," Elayne ran a hand through her hair. During that fight that had occurred directly after the confrontation Inferno had initiated, the pendant had simply given out during the fight.

She subconsciously rubbed at her wrists, then realized what she was doing and stopped herself. The wards around the mansion and estate had failed twice already, resulting in her having to reset them the only way she knew how. Using her blood to boost the energy the pendant put out.

As she had never died and been born into another lifetime like the others, she was still in her original body. Her blood was ancient and due to that, magic was littered throughout it. Magic she could use with most spells and incantations.

Elayne pulled her long sleeve shirt back down over her wrist to cover the fresh scars covering her arm. In about two days the scars would fade to white and look ages older than what they were. Until then she'd just have to hide them. If one of the others saw it, they'd think she was suicidal.

"Ugh forget this," she grumbled out, before walking out of the bathroom and falling into her bed. She was asleep within moments, never noticing when the black tiger joined her and failing to pick up on what was occurring with her charges.

…Not that she could have _stopped_ what was going on…

* * *

_A/N: On second thought, I just realized that Book 3 has been updating on FFNet for two years. I think it's past time for it to be finished updating on here, so you can get to Book 4. Be warned! I have tried very hard to keep "pairings" out of TGOL until the last possible moment. Book 4 would be that moment; so any relationships hinted at before will be FINALIZED in Book 4 (yes, here's a hint the relationships actually play a pivotal role in that Book). Some are obvious, but some are not. I did not have the time to focus on all the relationships in this story simply because there are far too many characters. There is a LOT of off-screen interaction that I do not get to write about between the characters simply because it does not relate to the plot. Every now and then I get to throw one in there (Ryo's little "date") simply because a reader dared me, or it was highly amusing and somehow furthered the plot {Thanos has now succeeded in getting Universe out of the way}. But there is a lot you don't get to see; which you can fill in with your own imagination, or just assume it has to do with the past lifetimes. And that's the only real big spoiler you'll get from me. Book 4 is going to be a lot darker than any of the books previous. It is also one of the longest, in the fact I had to split it into two books (getting my Book 5 and allowing me to have my 6 book series that I wanted). There's a lot more clifhangers, and a LOT more surprises. Thank you for sticking with Book 3, and the series as a whole, it's been a long journey and it is FAR from over._

_ -LG_


	29. Chapter 28

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

**Written: March 31st, 2008**

**Typed: May 8, 2008**

The swordsman of Halo warily looked around, though he immediately knew where he was…The forest outside the Shinwako mansion...Except, this was a very long time ago as the trees looked far younger than what he had seen.

Sage got to his feet and dusted off his clothes. He was not sure how he had landed in a heap, but not willing to dwell on it at this point in time. His violet eyes scanned the area around him, looking for something, or anything.

He needed guidance, and his lips were pressed into a thin line, "Why bring me here Korin?" He _knew_ he was sleeping, and yet he knew that this dream was real.

The armor resonated firmly in the back of Sage's mind, and was quick to answer '_It is time, Seiji-sama.'_

The Ronin of Halo had no need to ask what it was time for…He was already aware. The young man started walking knowing where he needed to go.

Sage had seen it in his dreams, what had to have been a million times…Where they had left Universe behind…But…

"I wouldn't go that way if I were you," a voice softly murmured jerking him from his thoughts.

The swordsman sharply turned his head, his eyes widening in surprise. The youth that stare back at him, was _him_…But, yet there was a difference.

Seiji's calm eyes regarded the blond with a little mirth, "I've been waiting on you, Date Sage."

The surprise and shock faded from the bearer of Halo's face, and he regarded his younger self carefully, "Have you?"

"Mm," the teenager stopped leaning against the tree and started to walk away from where Sage had been heading. "You already know what's there. Do you really want to see it, _again_?"

"No," he answered as he followed. "Too bad Ryo couldn't have offered us a little forewarning."

"Ah, he remembered first?" Seiji queried and at the nod, he shook his head, "Why am I not surprised? He normally prompts this." The faintest of smiles was on his lips, but Sage did not see it more attune to what he was passing by.

Following his twin to the palace, the Halo Ronin remained silent…Until they got there.

"How is that possible?" Sage asked sounding rather baffled.

Seiji frowned and tilted his head to glance back at him, "What's wrong?"

"Where we reside currently is on the exact same grounds," the swordsman explained the confusion clear in his face.

"Ah," Seiji grinned, "It'll make sense to you soon enough."

"Will it?" Apparently Sage wasn't fully convinced.

"I know how you feel, I've been here before," the younger told him. "But, there's nothing for you to worry about. The time for you to remember your past is now."

"What of you?"

Seiji chuckled in amusement, "I _am_ you, and I will continue to exist in that respect. What I know, will simply become a part of your knowledge. You and I are different, but your life, your current personality, will remain. You might pick up an old quirk or two, but that's it."

"Old quirk?" Sage raised a golden eyebrow at hearing this, and waited for an elaboration.

"I'm rather defensive of Universe."

"Pah," the swordsman of Halo waved his younger self off, "Already there."

"Good," Seiji said closing his eyes and letting out a relieved sigh. "I was always fearful that everything we put her through would get to her, and no one would be there to look out for her."

"Don't worry about that, Kento and I pretty much have it covered."

"Shuu?" Seiji chuckled and shook his head, remarking, "The more we change, the more we stay the same." However the amusement faded from his face, as he turned back to the matter at hand, "Are you prepared?"

"As ready as I will ever be," Sage admitted with a nod.

"Good luck to you."

"Thanks," the Ronin of Halo grinned, before closing his eyes and calling the armor to him. He had needed no further instruction, already aware of what he had to do.

* * *

"Ugh," the Warrior of Strength moaned out rubbing at his sore backside. "Why'd I have to land on my butt?"

"Would you have preferred landing on your head?" a voice queried in amusement.

"Wouldn't have hurt as much," Kento retorted without thinking, before his eyes nearly popped out of his skull when he saw who had spoken. "I-wha…You? Me…Uh…Wah?" The Ronin of Hardrock stopped trying to talk, and then said, "Dude this is **_so_** messed up."

Shuu sniggered, "You're telling this to _me_?" The teenager shook his head, and offered a hand to him, "C'mon you know why you're here. Let's get a move on."

"Pushy much?" Kento queried of his younger self with a half-raised eyebrow.

"Impatient," Shuu cheerfully corrected. "Been waiting on you for a long time. Can you blame me?"

"Guess not," Kento admitted, casting a sideways glance to the forest they were passing by, and a certain path…"That trail, is that the one where we-?"

"Ya," Shuu's tone of voice was now gruff, "More times than we'll ever be able to fully grasp too." He shook his head, anger reflected in his eyes, "Burns me up, every time I think about it."

Kento watched as the teenager clenched his fist and then smashed it into a tree, causing it to fall, he dryly remarked, "I can tell."

"Heh," Shuu rubbed at the back of his neck, now slightly embarrassed.

"So," the Ronin of Hardrock wrinkled his nose, "What exactly is the purpose behind meeting you?"

To this the teenager gave a wry grin, "If Touma were here he'd give some overtly logical and exceedingly boring explanation. But having gone through this myself? Well, think of it as an ending to my part in a story, and the continuation of yours."

"Plus," he added as an afterthought, "The Council went through an awful _lot_ of trouble to separate us from our memories. In response to what they did, we lingered behind. We had to be here in order for you to get them back."

"We? Meaning the others are currently going through the same thing?" Kento blinked.

Shuu gave a nod, "It's a rule of thumb, one of us tends to remember everything first and the rest quickly follow after. But, when everyone else remembers it all happens at the same time, to keep anyone from accidentally triggering a memory."

"Does more harm than good," the Warrior of Strength finished, and then sniggered, "Wonder how Rowen is taking this?"

Shuu rolled his eyes, "Knowing Touma? The two of 'em are probably arguing over the impossibility of the whole thing."

"Sounds about right," Kento chuckled out, before coming to the realization that it was time. But he felt the need to say something first, so he did, "Don't worry about mei mei. We're all looking out for her this time around."

The teen seemed relieved to here this, and gave a nod in thanks, before saying, "Nice meeting you."

"Likewise," the Ronin of Hardrock said with a grin, and then called forth his armor fully aware that he needed it in order to 'finish' this.

* * *

Rowen reverently shook his head, "Nu-uh, not possible."

"I know it," the young Touma agreed. "It implies higher order workings, a _lot_ higher."

"Exactly," Strata's bearer said.

Needless to say, after fifteen minutes of discussing the impracticality of the occurrence, what its existence meant, and what other things could potentially be out there…Rowen paused.

"If this keeps up, I'm gonna be the only one without my memories, huh?"

"Mhm," the teenager nodded his blue head, having convinced Rowen in walking as they debated. "Pretty much."

"Heh," the archer sighed as he rubbed at the back of his head. "Still can't believe what I've been seeing. That it all, more or less, started here."

"Odd, ne?" Touma sighed. "That's what I thought, too. Especially with the rip to Akemliek's dimension-"

"Being so close by," Rowen finished for him, and then asked, "Universe created the gateway didn't she? After being told she didn't have a choice in the matter?"

A nod was what the archer gained in response, and the teenager did not bother to query how Strata knew, "She's been trying to close it ever since then. But, she can't."

"I see," the archer murmured, now looking at his younger self carefully. "Guess I've put it off long enough, right?"

Touma chuckled at this but that was the only form of response he gave. Just as Rowen opened his mouth to say something, he did, "Ah…I've never been quite good at this."

The Ronin of Strata raised an eyebrow, but waited for the teenager to say what was currently on his mind.

"Take care of each other," he said in a calm tone. "Even on your bad days. And…Talk often. A lot of what happened with us could have been avoided if we had simply stopped for five minutes and talked it out."

"I gotcha," the archer understood all too well what was being hinted at. It was knowledge he would keep in mind for the future, it would certainly be needed. He took pause for a moment, and then summoned his armor.

* * *

The Ronin of Torrent could only blink.

"It certainly took you long enough, now didn't it?" Shin asked with a scoff.

Cye blinked further.

"Well, don't just sit there all day! Let's get a move on mate," the teenager ushered.

Cye just blinked some more.

"Oi! Come on, up off your arse," Shin ordered as he unceremoniously yanked Cye to his feet.

"W-wait a minute," Cye protested as he flailed at being pulled up and then shoved forward.

"Ya can't sit there all day mate," Shin told him with a cheerful smirk. "You _could_, but then you'd be the only bloke without your memories back."

Cye was just trying to recover from the fact this 'twin' of his was completely opposite him in personality.

"C'mon now!" Shin objected, catching the thought. "I am _not_ that bad." He was beaming at this point, "In fact, I used to be _worse_."

After hearing that, Cye's eyes got as wide as saucers leaving Shin in complete hysterics.

"I am going to need a _drink_ after this," the Torrent Ronin moaned out.

Shin chuckled, "Ah, no worries. We are the same person, my personality was just a little…Er a lot…Ya know? Never mind. There are some habits I have, that you'll probably pick back up on. But, you'll still be-"

"Me?" the Torrent Ronin finished, though he still sounded slightly apprehensive. Not that anyone could blame him for being so.

"Mhm," the teenager gave a nod, the playfulness now gone to replaced by a grimness that took Cye aback. "It needs to be done. You can't keep going without your memories…Our memories. The longer it waits, the harder it'll be to accept them."

"I understand."

"Favor?" Shin let out a sigh, "Look after them…Even when they tell you not to." Here he offered his elder self a wry smile, "I learned the hard way what happens when you don't."

"You don't have to worry mate," Cye was the one smirking now. "I've become a professional in the mother hen department."

Shin chortled at this and shook his head, before calming himself down and giving a nod. He knew he didn't have to explain to Cye what needed to happen now…At this point none of the warriors needed to be told what to do, they already knew.

Cye drew in a sharp breath and focused on the link with his armor, within seconds it had heard his plea and responded.


	30. Chapter 29

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

**Written: April 5th 2008**

**Typed: May 9, 2008**

Kayura opened her cobalt-blue eyes languidly, before slowly sitting up. She blinked as she studied her surroundings, and then caught a glance at her attire.

"Why am I wearing my warrior garb?"

"Good question," a lilting voice brought in. "I'd love to hear the answer."

Kayura merely blinked at seeing the younger version of herself decked out in warrior attire. But while similar to her own it was different in color…There was red and yellow in it.

"Ah!" Kayura gaped as something clicked into place. "You meant _I'm_ one of the Seasonal Senshi?"

The younger laughed in amusement, "Of course. The Spring armor would not have remained with you. Its true that an armor bearer can will their armor to another…But, it would not have staid unless you were a proper bearer."

The Lady Ancient frowned but trailed the girl as she started to walk away, "So then, does this mean the Elemental and Seasonal Senshi are-?"

"Capable of wearing the armors should anything happen to the original bearers, yes," the teen nodded. "But, only for a short period. The armors are simply too strong for anyone but the original bearers to wear and use."

"That I understand all too well," Kayura murmured as the two approached the palace. "Is there anything I need to know?"

"Oh, you'll know it all in a few minutes," the younger remarked in amusement. Before paused, "Just understand, it is up to you whether you pursue what you have had in a past live. You don't _have_ to."

Kayura raised one eyebrow in suspicion, "Oh let me _guess_. That's why Elayne has been teasing Rowen and I."

When her younger self merely blushed in embarrassment, Kayura choked out, "You're **_kidding_**!"

The teenage nervously rubbed at her arm, but said nothing in the form of response, allowing Kayura to stew over it.

The Lady Ancient's eye was twitching, "I'm going to _strangle_ that little bitch."

"Heh it's not her fault," the younger said by way of defending her. "Touma and I were not the best of friends, and Universe always found it amusing we got so close after getting past our differences."

Kayura gave the other a half-lidded look, "She's already lived through this current life I happen to be on, several times."

"Oh…" the younger blinked, and then shrugged. "Strangle her."

The Lady Ancient gave a snort, "So then, I guess its time?"

"Yes. Though…"

"What is it?" Kayura gently pried, having hear the hesitance in the teen's voice.

"I'm worried about Universe," she admitted quietly. "All of us are aware of what has been going on, the powers keep us informed. Universe grieved for us, but never has the guilt come into play. Now that she's been freed from being a total warrior, I'm fearful of the consequences."

"I'm sure she'll be-" Kayura paused at seeing the younger shake her head.

"Everytime we died, a part of her did. And each time we get our memories back, it hurt her. But she's never been able to act on the emotions before, because she was taught to hold them in. Now, she cannot."

"I understand your fears, and I have worried over it as well," Kayura admitted, "No matter how she reacts, we'll look after her, all of us."

"I am certain you will," the teenager bowed her head in respect. "Farewell to you, and good luck."

Kayura gave a smile in thanks, before closing her eyes and then they snapped open as she called on her power.

* * *

Sekhmet failed to be impressed by any of this…Naaza seemed to feel the same way. Neither had spoken much, they had merely walked to the palace and were not loitering about. _Finally,_ the awkward silence drove Naaza berserk and he broke it.

"You could say something!"

The Fall Seasonal gave a snort, "What would you like me to say? That this is utterly ridiculous?"

"Well, at least you're saying something," Naaza commented with a grumble.

Sekhmet did not bother to grace this with a retort he merely rolled his eyes.

"Are you ready to accept your past?" the teenager demanded his patience starting to wear thin.

Sekhmet's eyes were half-lidded as he blandly commented, "Why else would I be here?"

"You are here because we felt the need to try this now, but it doesn't mean you have to do this at this time. Especially with as to how indifferent you are acting."

"Forgive me if I fail to jump for joy," the Seasonal of Fall gave another snort and another roll of his eyes.

It was Naaza's turn to offer a lidded look, "You _must_ be ready for this. It is important for you to have your memories; that is true. However, not unless you-"

"I get it, I get it!" Sekhmet exasperatedly commented, "Let's just get this _over_ with, already."

Naaza nodded and then flashed the man a grin, "Keep an eye on Uni for me."

"Will do," the Seasonal of Fall offered a chuckle, before calling upon his armor.

* * *

Anubis frowned as he eyed the young teenager he was currently in the presence of.

Shuten seemed to realize this, and sighed, "It is necessary for it to be done this way."

"And why is that?" the Spring Seasonal queried.

"Because of the nature of how we died, and what the Council went through to keep the memories sealed. We are different from you, and yet we are the same."

"It was intentional on their part, was it not?" Anubis queried the frown having now turned into an outright scowl.

"Yes, and now they are disbanded but the blocks left in place remain for you, as they do for us," Shuten said, and then steered the conversation back on topic, "Your meeting of-"

"Your past self is to signify the completion of a cycle," Anubisu said to Cale over his shoulder.

The youth walked with a certain dignified air…A stride Cale had not taken in quite a long time.

"As in ending the gap between lifetimes?" Cale arched a dark-blue eyebrow as he posed this question.

"Exactly," Anubisu nodded leaping up onto the stone railing with the agility of a young wolf. To this Cale snorted and did the same exact thing causing the younger to grin. "Good to know some habits haven't been lost."

"I take it there is a reason for us coming to this place?" the Winter Seasonal surveyed the palace around him, already having been aware of the fact it lay on the present day site of the Shinwako mansion.

"Yes," the teen gave a nod. "You see-"

"Because of what has happened here, the great amount of energy that has been expended has become trapped," Rajura explained to Dais…The Summer Seasonal had asked the same question as Winter's bearer.

"Ah, you use the residual energy to help unlock the memories and get past the block," Dais commented as it made sense to him.

"That and the memories have become trapped in that energy," Rajura commented. "In order to unlock them we have to be here. Everything has a beginning and an end. For us this was the beginning point, and now it is the ending…While it is your, and the others, continuation."

"I see," the Summer Seasonal acknowledged.

Silence passed between them for a few moments, before Rajura broke it, "Ready?"

In response to this question, Dais called his armor to him. Yes, he was.

* * *

"Take care," Anubisu chuckled out.

Cale gave a smirk, "Easier said then done." Just before he called upon his armor he added, "But I will try, if nothing else."

* * *

"Hm," Shuten murmured coming back and saying to his older self, "The others have remembered."

"Senshi included?" Anubis queried from where he sat meditating. He had told Shuten he would wait until the others had finished talking with their past selves, and accept his memories after they had.

The request had not surprised his younger self in the slightest, being almost the same person Shuten understood the reasoning behind it. Anubis did not feel comfortable in leaving anyone behind. The Spring Seasonal had to walk away from the other Seasons in order to help them, and it was still something he felt guilty for doing.

He refused to leave them behind again, that much he was firmly set on. Now he waited for an answer from Shuten.

Shuten closed his eyes, and reached out…Normally, someone was there to respond, but there was no one now, "They're back as well."

"Very well then," Anubis got to his feet, a smile on his face, "Let us join them."

* * *

Kento awoke with a low grunt, and he slowly rubbed at his eyes to rid them of sleep. He let out a yawn and sat up, took a good look around and smirked at Cye's sleeping form.

He casually reached over and picked up a bean bag ball, lightly tossed it up in the air, and then winged it at the sleeping form. As it went sailing through the air, hurtling towards its unsuspecting target…Cye put up a hand and forced the projectile away with a stream of water.

Cye sat up and gave his best friend a bored look, "You haven't even been back twenty-four hours yet, and you've already decided to start?"

"It's known as making up for lost time, Shin," the Warrior of Strength chuckled before getting out of the bed.

The Ronin of Trust grumbled out something that was probably a 'bloody hell,' but Kento paid it little mind as he pulled on clean clothes for the day. He stretched, "Man it's good to be back."

"Didn't know we were missing," was the comment that came from Torrent's bearer.

He opened his mouth to make a remark, but decided against it as he headed out the door and into the hall, "Dudes, s'up?" This statement was made to the Ronin of Strata and Halo who were standing out in the hall having just come out of their room.

Cye gave a smirk as he followed after Kento, and shut the door behind him, "Rowen's up before noon. I'll be damned."

"You already are damned," the archer waved Torrent's bearer off, "Remember that time when-"

Sage clamped a hand down over his friend's mouth, and gave him a lidded look, "It's too early for that kind of talk To." The swordsman immediately knew what Rowen was referencing and had no desire to hear it.

"Guess that means we are all back then," the Warrior of Strength remarked with a chuckle.

The other two gave nods, and the swordsman removed his hand from the archer's mouth. Rowen threw Sage a look which the blond responded to by rolling his eyes.

"So," the Ronin of Strata asked with a grin, "How we going to break this to Ryo?"

"I dunno about anyone else," Cye brought in with a smirk. "But, I'm all for scaring and confusing the hell out of him."

"Works for me," Hardrock's bearer cheerfully brought in.

The Ronin of Halo gave a roll of his violet eyes, managing to hide the grin on his face by turning and opening the door to Ryo's room and walking in, the other three followed.

White Blaze cracked open an eye at them, and let out a rumble, _'Now what are they up to?'_

"Not much," the archer assured the tiger, before each of them took up a spot in the room to wait on their leader to stir.

Blaze gave a snort at that closing his eye, and then both of them snapped open as he glanced at his cub's friends, _'Oh, brother. You all certainly took your sweet time in remembering.'_

"Nice to see you too old buddy, old pal," the Ronin of Torrent cheerfully quipped.

_'All right, have fun kids, I'm leaving,' _the tiger hauled himself to his feet, opened the door with his tail, and pulled it shut behind him.

"Aw, he doesn't love us anymore," Rowen commented with a pout.

Sage gave a snort at this, "No, he just realized this place went from a regular nut house to a magical insane asylum."

"Ah, that might do it," the Ronin of Hardrock admitted with a grin. Now the four of them would just stand there and wait on Ryo to wake up.

* * *

Really, Ryo's dreams had been fine until the point…But for some reason he now found himself alone in a room that was darker than what even Cale could handle. In this room there was nothing, except all of a sudden he caught the four pairs of eyes staring at him.

He bolted from sleep due to being severely creeped out, noticed that there were four sets of eyes staring at him, yelped and promptly fell out of the bed.

Sage blinked at the reaction, both eyebrows shooting upward as he cast a glance to Rowen who was chortling and merely offered a shrug of his shoulders.

Cye was laughing, "Hell, that went better than I hoped!"

"Yeah, that was a good one," Kento sniggered, "Oi, Ryo you okay?"

Ryo was quickly on his feet, "What the _hell_ are you doing in here? And what the _hell_ are you staring at me for?"

"Don't say it," the archer warned Cye, before saying to Ryo, "You're normally up about 7, it's nearly 8. And you really don't want to know what we've been plotting to do to you, busybody."

"Huh?" there was a blank look on the Ronin Leader's face now, as he looked at his four teammates.

"You're getting to be as bad as Universe when it comes to the meddling department," the swordsman informed Ryo with a light grin. Chortling outright when the look on Wildfire's face went only more blank.

"Member the time he decided to try and 'help' the Elemental Senshi with that one training session of theirs?" Cye asked of Kento. "And how he ended up nearly setting their uniforms on fire?"

Kento chuckled, "Come on, you know he did that on purpose."

"Oh! Ya what about the time he switched out their transformation pendants on them?" Rowen brought in, and to that Sage merely sniggered.

"Wait a minute, that first one was an accident, that time," the Wildfire Ronin protested, "And, they earned it." He then glowered at the four of them, "It's nice to know you guys are back, but you don't have to start off with hounding me right off the bat."

"Aw!" they chorused, "Now where's the fun in that?"

Ryo let out a low moan and looked skywards, why him?

* * *

Fifteen minutes later the five of them headed downstairs very much bickering about things that had happened in the past. It was there way of making up for lost time.

"Would you drop it already?" the Ronin of Wildfire asked in a moan. They were back on his habit of trying to set things on fire. "It's not my fault I could light your girlfriends' up better than you could."

"EH?" Sage nearly fell down the last three steps, totally unprepared to hear that comment from his leader. The blond merely shook his head, and walked into the kitchen pulling out a bottle of sake.

Cale raised an eyebrow at this, "Isn't it a little early?"

"Not when you live in this nut house," the swordsman definitively told him, pulling out a glass, and pouring himself a drink, "Want some?"

"Sure," the Winter Seasonal placed his tea mug on the counter, allowed the blond to pour, and then picked up the spiked tea, "Thanks. I happen to think Kukicha[1] tastes better with a kick."

Rowen tried to work his jaw a few times, but failed to come up with a response to Ryo's comment. He shrugged his shoulders and flopped down in the living room chair, not that interested in eating at this point in time.

Kento had only been able to helplessly stare at Ryo, who merely gave a triumphant grin at his friends' dumfounded states.

The Ronin of Hardrock rolled his eyes, and also entered the living room, saying to the Summer and Fall Seasonal, "Morning."

"Morning," Sekhmet answered flipping through a book on plants with only a mild interest. Dais offered a mere nod in acknowledgement, before closing his eye again.

Cye clapped Ryo on the shoulder, "I'm proud of ya mate, you developed a backbone. Sure as hell took you long enough, didn't it?"

"Shin," the Ronin Leader said in warning his right eye slightly twitching.

The Ronin of Torrent chortled at this, and stopped pestering his leader walking over and slapping Sekhmet in the back of the head.

"Ouch!"

"Feet off the table you walking lizard," Cye ridiculed with a pointed stare, waiting for the demand to be met before walking on.

"Great," Sekhmet groused, "Instead of being just an ass, he's gone back to being a kick in the ass."

Kayura gave a grin, "That's okay, I like him better that way." She gave them all a look, "Anyone makes a comment they _die_, clear?"

All the men gave avid nods to this, not willing to push the Lady Ancient around…The only one capable of getting away with that was Elayne.

"So," Anubis murmured quietly, catching the group's attention, "What do we tell her?"

The mood of the room immediately turned somber, as each of the warriors exchanged knowing looks. This had been their main fear about returning, what kind of affect it would have on the Secondary Guardian.

"We have to break it to her gently," Ryo told them with a sigh. "She might be able to handle it slightly better that way."

Sage was grim-faced, "I don't see her handling it well at all. I don't think it matters what we do to cushion the blow, it'll still have the same effect."

"A kick in the gut," the Summer Seasonal commented, "We'll do what we can though."

White Blaze listened to this conversation with a slight flick of ears and tail, the white tiger already knew for a fact that even if they did what they could…She would not react to it well, simply because she had been through too much now.

* * *

_ Kukicha: A Japanese green tea made from stalks, stems and twigs._


	31. Chapter 30

**Chapter Thirty**

**Written: April 11th 2008**

**Typed: May 9, 2008**

The blankets had become tangled around her body as she struggled against some unseen force. The fever had broken only an hour ago, most of the poison in her system having been eradicated by this point. But, now sweat poured from her brow and her breath came in as short ragged gasps.

"No…"

Black Blaze snapped awake and quickly got up and plodded over to her, nudging her gently in the side, _'Hime?'_

Elayne did not stir still too deeply embedded in what she was seeing, making her unable to hear the tiger or to feel his prodding.

_'Hime!'_ This rumble was louder than the first, but it too did no good.

"No!" She bolted into a sitting position her hair falling into her face. Elayne took in gasping breaths, her entire body shaking.

_'Hime,'_ Black Blaze whined as he gently nudged her hand as a form of reassurance.

"I-I'm okay," she whispered out, pushing the hair from her face. The young woman closed her eyes and forced herself to calm down, by pushing the unsettling emotions away.

The tiger however remarked in alarm, _'No you're not!'_

Elayne was prepared to rebuff the concern but noticed what the tiger was referring to. Her violet eyes widened in shock as she put a hand to her side, and then with drew it. It was bloody.

She swore and then leapt out of the bed stalking off to the bathroom. The tiger followed behind her at a discreet pace.

The young woman took off her shirt and cast it to the floor to better examine the nine-inch wound on her side. She washed off her hands, and took a wet cloth and dabbed at the blood on her side.

Once it was clean enough, she opened the medicine cabinet and pulled out a needle and thread, threading the needle and then sewing up her side.

"So glad my synapses are shot," the young woman grumbled, before biting the thread and knotting it off. "Every time I see that life end, this wound opens up. I still don't understand why."

She cast a glance over herself in the mirror to find that she was not as pale as she had been, that was good. The fact that the blood she had just washed off was nearly red meant that the poison had largely been removed from her system. Small miracles, but she would take them nonetheless.

Black Blaze let out a low purr, before gently butting against the back of her leg, _'Hime?'_

Elayne shook herself having permitted herself to become lost in memory again. She kneeled down and threw her arms around the black tiger, burying her face into his soft silky fur.

"The more I see it, the more I am left asking why," she mumbled to him, "I don't understand why this is affecting me so badly. I've always been able to put the past behind me, and now it seems that it won't leave me alone."

_'Because you're you hime,' _the tiger continued to purr and affectionately licked her cheek. _'You're still Universe the warrior, but you're human now too. Is it really such a bad thing?'_

"Right now it is," the young woman's tone was quiet. "I don't know how much more of this I can handle Kouken. I _hate_ feeling so weak like this, and I don't know what to do with myself."

_'You'll be fine,'_ the tiger assured her with a cat-grin, not feeling the need to add that she always ended up being all right.

"One can hope," she lightly joked, before getting to her feet and adding, "Okay you, out of here so I can shower."

_'Why?'_ The majestic cat innocently queried, trying to play the fool a role he was not at all well suited for.

"Because I am not listening to you tease Ryo about seeing me undress, out!"

Black Blaze pouted, _'Ruin all my fun!'_

Elayne closed the door behind him with a definitive slam, and she rolled her eyes, "I need a new life. Preferably in a galaxy, far, far, **_FAR _**away from this one."

* * *

Fifteen minutes later Elayne came down the stairs; her body ached from the leftover poison so she had permitted herself to be lazy and kept her hair down. It was normal for her to have it up, she rarely let it down but she felt entitled to indulge her lazy side for one day.

"Morning," Ryo greeted, then paused and grinned at seeing her appearance.

Elayne quirked an eyebrow at him, "What?"

"I like you with your hair down," the Ronin Leader chuckled as he walked up to her, and pushed a strand out of her eyes tucking it behind her ear. Elayne blinked at the action, and then mentally rolled her eyes immediately guessing he was going to plan on being a suck-up.

"I'm sorry about last night," Ryo murmured with a sigh. "I was stupid, and didn't even realize you weren't feeling well. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, the dagger was poisoned." Elayne was quick to assure him by saying, "Its already out of my system, it wasn't a damaging kind just enough to make me ill. And, forget about last night. I understood where you were coming from the poison was just wreaking havoc with my system."

The Ronin of Wildfire gave her a concerned frowned, "Shouldn't you be resting then?"

"I figured I'd come down. Not to sound completely like gege, but I'm _starving._"

Ryo laughed at this and allowed himself to relax, if she said she was okay then he believed her, "Ya, you better get some food into your system."

"After all, your skin and bones as it is," Cye supplied as he came out from the back hall and sat down in the living room. "Need me to make you something?"

"No thanks Cye, I'm good," the young woman said ducking into the kitchen.

"Aw, you've struck a blow to my pride," the Water Ronin pouted.

"Better your pride then your head," the swordsman of Halo pointed out from his comfortable seat in the overstuffed chair. "Like _you_ did to Ro."

"Oh hell, he was _asking_ for it," Cye told the blond with a brief wave of his hand in dismissal. Then he thought about it, "Actually, no. He was **begging** me to wallop his nerdy-ass."

Elayne had grabbed an apple from the fridge and now she munched on it, wrinkling her nose at what she was hearing. Cye was certainly in some mood this morning. And when Sage merely laughed instead of showing surprise at the comment she swallowed her make-shift meal and frowned.

Okay, she had _missed_ something somewhere. But, her mind was still in such a state that she couldn't think about 'what.' Not that she would have wanted to if her mind was clear.

"Not deaf," Rowen said as he slapped Torrent's bearer in the back of his head. "And you were acting too much like Ryo for our own good."

"Oh ha," the Ronin of Trust snorted out glaring at the archer who had retreated to some paces behind the sofa, "C'mere so I can deck you again."

"Cye," Sage shook his head in warning, "Make blueberry pancakes, _later._"

The Ronin of Torrent immediately burst out laughing, while Rowen scowled sending the blond an extremely dirty look.

"Oi! Some best friend you are."

"Don't take away Sage's title of Drama Queen, Ro," Kento brought in as he walked into the house. "It is rude to usurp the royalty."

The swordsman gave Kento a very bored look, blandly commenting, "Whatever you say renga buta."

"Why you!" the Hardrock Ronin indignantly sputtered as he made throttling gestures, to this the others burst out in laughter.

Elayne shook her head at their childish antics barely able to conceal the smile on her face, she threw her apple core in the trash and then she froze. Had Sage just called Kento a brick pig?

_'Seiji came up with that…' _Suddenly she winced and rubbed at the point between her eyes a moment.

"Not feeling well?" Kayura gently queried, having finished going through the cabinets and making a list of things that were needed from the store.

Elayne threw the young woman a wry grin, "Better than I was after coming back from the Nether Realm."

"And we call _that_ an improvement?" Anubis asked as he tilted his head.

"Oh back off Nuby," the Lady Ancient told him, "Go find something to mother. You and Cye can make a date out of it."

Elayne chortled at this and shook her head, "Kay, my friend, you truly are something."

"Thanks," the woman beamed at the praise.

"What that something is, we won't even guess," Dais drawled out. "It'd be hazardous to our health."

Sekhmet gave a snort in amusement, "Like us dying, and nearly dying on a millennial basis _isn't_?"

"Good point," Cale rolled his eyes skyward. "I suppose you want an award for such genius."

"Ugh," Elayne moaned out rubbing at her forehead again, "You guys give me migraines. What are you, four?"

Sage gave a chuckle in amusement, "Imouto, why ask questions you know the answers to?"

"Everyone else is blabbering," Elayne remarked as she now skimmed through the cupboards to see if there was anything small that she could eat.

Kento said with a grin, "And you have to add your two cents."

"Because there are things that need to be reflected on," Cye finished with a chuckle.

Elayne felt her heart go to her throat, recognizing the fact they were quoting something she had told them a lifetime ago. No, it was _not_ possible, there was no way. She was getting ahead of herself.

Rowen gave a snort, "The day you two reflect on anything, is the day I become emperor."

"You keep working on that," Sage chortled at his best friend, shaking his head in mirth.

All the breath left her in a whoosh, the blood in her veins going ice cold…She leaned against the kitchen counter for support. Taking in several shaky breaths, and pushing the hair from her face.

"Elayne?" Kayura queried, she and the eight men were staring at her in alarm…None of them quite sure if this was an affect of the poison or what. "Elayne, are you-" The Lady Ancient fell silent as the young woman raised her hand.

Elayne did it once more: she forced the emotions bottled up within her away. With that same attitude she pushed herself off the counter and walked into the living room. Once she was half-way into it, she stopped, and asked in a low tone, "How long?"

They all hesitated, not quite sure if they should answer, fearful of reading too much into what was going on and upsetting her.

"How long have you had your memories _back_?"

"Few hours," Rowen sheepishly offered her with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Went to bed last night, and woke up this morning with them," Cye elaborated in a soothing tone, already able to tell she was upset.

The young woman closed her eyes before casting a look at Wildfire's bearer, and that was all she needed to know. The look on his face clearly told her that he had not done this. His appeal to her last night had not solely prompted the memories coming back, it was the fact that she had been ill and the armors had taken advantage of her being disorientated. _'Par for the course.'_

Without a word she walked over to the door and tugged on her windbreaker, stepping into her shoes.

"An?" Sekhmet queried in a worried tone. "What-?" He paused though suddenly aware of the fact she had walled herself in. Her presence and mental line were not visible in his mind. She was going to bolt.

Her voice was tired sounding when she spoke, "Don't misunderstand this, please. I'm glad you have your memories back. I just…I need some time. Don't come after me, please just don't…"

"Elayne!"

"_Please? _I just-I can't…"

She was out the door before they could stop her. Her legs carried her to where she needed to go. At this point she no longer cared where; she just needed to be away.

It was too much. She'd been fighting the replaying memories for the past two months, and now…Now after all this time they were back again? Elayne simply could not cope with the emotions she'd been keeping as Universe at bay for over three millennia.

A half-hour later, when she had long since pulled off the main path, she slumped down to the ground and buried her face in her hands. And for the first time in almost a thousand years the warrior broke down and cried.

* * *

Kayura swore under her breath and was prepared to make her way over to the door when a hand on her shoulder stopped her, "To?"

Midnight-blue eyes regarded her calmly and he sadly shook his head, "Let her alone Kayura. We expected her to react this way, and she wants the time by herself. I think she needs it right now."

"But," the Lady Ancient protested, "It isn't right."

"No, but she'll be fine," Ryo murmured. "She asked for us to leave her be, the least we can do is respect that wish."

"For the first time," Kento said quietly, "She's able to confront her emotions that have been weighing her down. I guess she prefers doing it on her own."

_'Or,' _Sage grimly thought to himself, _'She can't face us because of how much guilt she now feels.'_

"Well we can't sit here all day and be depressed," Dais brought in now. "There are things that need to be done. Some of you have jobs you need to get to, or classes rather."

"Shit!" Sage and Rowen collectively swore before saying hasty goodbyes, grabbing their things, and booking it out the door.

"Ah, Mama is going to _kill_ me!" Kento yelped before he too left.

Ryo and Cye stared at each other, and then leveled a look at Summer's bearer.

"Dais it's Saturday," the Ronin Leader sighed out.

Cye gave a nod, "Mama asked Kento to help on Monday, and Sage and Ro don't have any classes today."

"I know that," the white-haired man had a smug grin on his face, "They_ didn't_ though."

"Raj," Sekhmet and Cale shook their heads at him, while Anubis merely chortled at the fact the three had bought into it.

Kayura let out a forlorn sigh, "And these are _my_ charges? The future really is doomed."

The words she spoke were in play, but soon they would be revealed to be prophetic. 30th Century Crystal Tokyo happened to now be in a dismal state.

Somehow, the future was starting to unravel at the seams. The events that had led up to Rini coming back in time were simply a foreshadowing of the terrible things that had been to come.

No one in the present could have guessed that the future problem would visit this time, and that it would be up to them to fix what had gone wrong. For right now the warriors remained unaware, simply glad to have their full memories back.

But soon, they would know of what was occurring in the future…And they would be dragged into a conflict the likes of which the world had never seen. Nor, would such a thing ever be seen again.

-End


	32. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

**Written: April 11th 2008**

**Typed: May 9, 2008**

**Two Weeks or So Later**

Cobalt-blue eyes warily scanned their surroundings, before the young boy slipped out of the alleyway he'd been hiding in. His blue hair was ruffled by the wind as it stirred, and then it stilled.

His shirt and jeans were clean, yet tattered and torn around the ages. The twelve-year-old's skin was almost ivory, showing that it had been sometime since he'd been in the sun.

A frown appeared on his face as he tried in vain to find someone, or something, familiar to him.

"Ian!" a voice chirped before he found himself being nearly bowled over by a seven-year-old boy.

"Bah, Addy!" the blue-haired Ian growled, somehow managing to catch his balance. He gave the younger child a half-lidded look, all though he was exceedingly relieved to see him.

The boy was about half his size, with reddish-black hair and his clothes seemed to be in the same disrepair as Ian's, "I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself. It's just different being able to-"

By this point Ian was no longer paying attention to Adrian, his cobalt-blue eyes were darting around looking for someone else. Where was she? Why couldn't he sense her, even back _there_ he had been able to sense her and now he couldn't. What if something had happened to her? If anything had…

"Ian, I'm right behind you," the eleven-year-old girl sighed out, as if catching the thoughts.

"Iya," Ian turned around and let out a huge sigh of relief, "You okay?"

"Fine," the blonde-haired girl assured. It was shoulder length, with just the slightest of curls to it, while her eyes were amethyst though they showed the signs of one who could not see. "What about you two, are you all right?"

"Ya, we're good," the blue-haired boy answered. "I just have no idea where we are."

_ 'Downtown Tokyo, Shinjuku it looks like,'_ a rolling voice supplied.

Ian directed his attention to the eight-month-old golden tiger cub at Aiyana's side, "Can we get to where we need to be, Kin?"

The tiger gave a nod, _'With luck.'_

"Let's go then," Aiyana murmured as she started to walk, direction already known to her…She could _feel_ where they needed to go. "And hope we can find them, and Nee-san."

The two young boys murmured words of agreement as they and the tiger followed her.

* * *

The Ronin of Torrent sat in one of the whicker chairs on the porch, lounging and enjoying the warm afternoon sun. His eyes were closed as he basked in the warmth currently being afforded to him. Then all of a sudden he abruptly sat up, a frown crossing his face.

"What's wrong?" Kento queried having caught this out of the corner of his eye. He was currently going over several papers for the family restaurant and working with the information as best he could.

Cye continued to frown as he reached out with his senses, but what had startled him was no longer there, "Dunno. It was something though."

"So, have the Senshi seen anything of Thanos lately?" the Hardrock Ronin asked as he went back to skimming through the papers in front of him.

The Ronin of Trust went back to lounging in his chair, "Nope. No one has seen him since last week when he came to bother us. And, complained because Universe wasn't around."

"Heh, he's starting to seriously bug me with that," Kento remarked with an annoyed look on his face. Before he remarked, "Why come out at all? I just don't get the whole harassing us thing."

"He's not on our side, so he has to do something to entertain himself?" the Torrent Ronin offered closing his eyes.

"Meh, he needs to get-"

"Do _not_ go there," Rowen had appeared and immediately slammed a hand over Kento's mouth having known where the conversation was going. The archer added as an afterthought, "Please."

Torrent's bearer sniggered at this but said nothing to it, merely asked of Sage who had also come onto the porch, "Did you sense that before?"

The blond gave a nod, realized Cye's eyes were close, and then answered, "Yes, I did. But I couldn't tell what it was."

"Me either, and that's what bothers me," the auburn-haired man cracked an eye open. "With the memories back, I know what to look for…Or would be able to identify an out of place energy. That I couldn't identify."

"We'll just have to keep an eye out, that's all we can do," Rowen told the two of them, glancing at his watch. "Meh, I need to get. I'll be late for class."

Kento saw an opening and gladly took it, "Oh, Kayura giving you _private_ tutoring lessons, or are you giving them to her?"

"SHUU!"

The Ronin of Hardrock leapt off the porch with a yelp, as the archer started chasing after him, fully intent on throttling him.

"Aren't you glad to have your memories back?" Cye dryly queried of the swordsman who had slammed his hand over his eyes in despair.

Sage gave a snort, "Ya, _thrilled._"

The two men could only shake their heads and sigh, before giving up on trying to make any sense of their friends odd behaviors. Hang out with someone long enough, you give up on trying to figure out the method to the madness. Be around the same group of people for over three thousand years?

…Well…Let's just leave that to your imagination.


End file.
